Forbidden Regrets
by hermygirl-14
Summary: There was only one thing that was absolutely clear. He, Ron Weasley, was in love with his best friend. Who what currently picking out a wedding dress with his mother, a dress that would never be worn for him.
1. Feeling Sorry

Ron stood surrounded by orange. He had never changed his wallpaper. The Chudley Cannons were still whizzing around his bedroom, quaffles and bludgers passing in each direction. Ron knew all their moves by heart now. It was difficult not to, when he'd been staring at the same walls for over 15 years.

Ron was still living at the Burrow, oddly enough. Out of his seven siblings, he was the only one that had a constant residence in the ancient house. His brother Bill was off in Egypt with his wife Fleur. Charlie was still working with dragons, only he had recently moved into Romania. Fred and George were living a very nice life off their booming Weasley Wheezes business. And Ginny was always moving in and out of apartments, never once truly settling down. The house was definitely quieter these days…

Ron slowly found a pair of slippers under an old stack of newspapers by the side of his bed, and slipped them on. He knew he had also changed a bit; more bitter than before. The reason for that, Ron didn't like to think about. His best friend Hermione Granger had announced her engagement two weeks ago. Caden Miff was the lucky man's name. She had met him on her first trip to America. Of course, it was love at first sight, at least the way Caden tells.

He's a nice guy, perfect in fact. His suits were always tailor made, he knew everything there was to know about wine, and his choppy blond hair was gelled with the utmost detail. Ron had seen him working on it one morning in the men's room at the Prophet. He began working there a month or two before Hermione first brought him to the Burrow. Before that day, Ron hadn't thought much of him, and now, he loathed him. Although, he couldn't very well show that. Caden graduated from one of the most prestige schools in America, high honors and all. From the moment Hermione stepped into the Burrow with him on her arm, Ron knew he had lost his chance.

However, fourteen days ago, that fact had been cemented. Ron was sitting at his desk, working on a dreadfully boring assignment when Neville brought in the commitments page he was working on. Neville, the awkward romantic, had a flare for writing enduring tales of love, births and losses.

"Ron, why didn't you tell me about Hermione?" He flounced in, his expression filled with half excitement half betrayal.

Caught off guard Ron stumbled, "What about Hermione? Is something wrong?"

"Wrong? No! It's quite the opposite, Caden just told me the good news. I'm writing about it right now; one of our very own and one third of the trio that saved the wizarding world getting married! What headlines!" Neville grinned, like a kid that just discovered the keys to Atlantis. "Can you believe it? When did you find out?"

Truth be told at the time Ron was dumbfounded. It had been eight months since he first met Caden, and only six since him and Hermione had been anything of an item. Sure, they met almost a year ago in America, but they had only been dating for a little over six months. "Right about now." He said deflated. "Did Caden tell you?"

Neville's face fell a little, he laughed nervously. "Oh, hopefully I didn't jump the gun. Yeah, the whole office has been buzzing about it. Caden said it happened Saturday night, at the Tutshill Tornadoes' quidditch match."

Ron hadn't known Caden to be a Tornadoes fan, but serves him well enough; jumping on the bandwagon like everyone else. What a horrible way to propose. He obviously didn't know Hermione at all. If Ron had a chance, he knew just how he'd-

"Brilliant match wouldn't you say? How'd that article go for you?" Neville snapped Ron out of his thoughts.

"Oh, Jordan's on that one. I've got regulations this week." Ron made a face, delighted for the change in subject.

"Tough luck, mate. I better get back, tell Hermione I said congrats!" Neville grinned again and flew out of the room, knocking over Lee Jordan's chair as he went.

Since that day, work had been hopeless; everyone patting Caden on the back, asking him questions about the wedding. Ron had no one to blame but himself though. He had let her get away. He was too cowardly to admit his feelings for fear of, what, rejection? Ron was not quite so sure anymore. There was only one thing that was absolutely clear. He, Ron Weasley was in love with his best friend who what currently picking out a wedding dress with his mother, a dress that would never be worn for him.

"Ronald, Mr. Longbottom is in the fire for you." His mother called up the stairs, pulling Ron from his thoughts.

"Coming Mum," Ron replied hurriedly, running a hand through his bright red hair. He had started to grow it out, only to realize that he was not skilled in the art of hair flipping. Pathetic. He would have to have his mum cut it again.

Once down the stairs he hastily moved towards the mantle in the living room, trying not to look at Hermione, who was seated on the oversized couch with magazines spread on her lap.

"Ron." A pudgy face smiled from the fire.

"Neville, how have you been?" Ron asked, taking a seat in the armchair.

Neville continued smiling. "Great, Luna just returned from Bulgaria. On the scene reporting can be such a hassle." Ron laughed; Luna had spent the last few weeks in Bulgaria looking for the Quibbler's next big news story. There was rumored to be some Snortknots running wild near the home of famous Quidditch player, Viktor Krum. "But, Ron, I didn't come here to talk about me. Mr. Welsh sent me." Ron's face fell. "He wants your report on his desk tomorrow morning or you could owl it to the office tonight. Do you have it?"

"I'm working on it Neville, I'm having a hard time putting the Cannons in good terms. I mean how am I supposed to write an article about my favorite team losing 10 to 230?"

"Maybe you could realize that your favorite team's glory days are over and stop betting on them every time they play." Hermione's voice flowed in the conversation. Ron turned and met her gaze. She kneeled down next to his chair, grinning brilliantly, as if waiting for a retort.

"You should know me enough by now Hermione, I never give up." She rolled her eyes and turned to Neville, a smile playing sweetly on her lips. Ron groaned inwardly at how close she was.

"Hello Neville, I haven't seen you in a while."

"Hi Hermione, too long I might add. Congratulations on the engagement." Ron winced; luckily, no one seemed to notice. "When's the wedding?"

"Well I don't know just yet, we're thinking a summer wedding would be nice. Don't worry you and Luna are first on the invitation list." Neville beamed and moved his gaze back at Ron.

"To answer your question, Ron, I have no idea. Whatever you do, you would be wise think of it fast. We go to press tomorrow morning and Welsh is getting impatient. I better get home, see you both soon I hope." With that, he was gone.

"Leave it to you to wait until the last second," Hermione joked. Her hand lay resting on his arm. "You know Ron I could help you with the article. We both know I'm not much of a sports writer but--" Hermione began however, Ron quickly interrupted.

"That's fine. You've got the wedding to plan." Before she could get out another word, he stood and jogged back up the stairs.

She sighed and pushed herself up off the floor.


	2. Caden

_Disclaimer: I do not own anything relating to Harry Potter, I am simply borrowing J.K. Rowling's wonderful characters, history and locations!_

"Why does he always have to do that?" Hermione muttered softly as she walked back into the kitchen.

Mrs. Weasley stood by the sink, briskly peeling potatoes as she absent-mindedly took out some dishes. "What's that dear?"

Hermione took a large stack of plates from the air and started to place them on the dining room table. "I was just wondering, has Ron seemed a bit… tense, lately?"

"Oh, it's nothing to worry about I'm sure; he's been a bit stressed at work lately, that's all. I can handle the table from here. You must put those magazines away! Caden should be here any moment. He's coming straight here from his parents', right?"

"Yes, Molly. He owled in this morning." Hermione smiled slightly. She knew she should just let Ron be, but part of her was still hung up on the reason why. He had been doing well since Hogwarts. The job was everything to him, everything he enjoyed and loved. Why now was he starting to fall behind and why was he shutting her out? She tried to act casual as she walked around the dining room table, tracing the small lines that ran through it. "Molly?"

"Yes dear."

"I was wondering; how long has Ron been having trouble at the Prophet?" Her eyes darted to the back of Mrs. Weasley's head and then back to the table when Molly glanced at her, frowning.

"Well," she began, pausing suddenly to charm cups. They levitated one by one, heading towards the table. Each set down perfectly next to its plate. "He hasn't been himself lately. A few months perhaps. I know there's something he's not voicing. A mother knows when there is a problem. I was hoping he would be at the very least coming to you about it…" She trailed off and turned back to the stove, eyebrows raised slightly.

"He doesn't talk to me either, perhaps Harry though?" Hermione added, hopeful.

"Of course, but with Harry continuously traveling... I'm sure he'll come around. Maybe once Harry moves back to England, things will be better." Molly smiled slightly.

"That is true. Harry and Ron have always had a connection that I've never been able to understand." Hermione said trying to convince herself more than Molly.

"Mhmm, yes dear." Molly's reply sounded a few worlds away. She had not seemed to hear a word that she, Hermione, had said. Her eyes were gazing out the window towards the back yard. When Hermione reached with in viewing distance, she stifled a laugh.

Mr. Weasley was standing in the middle of the yard holding a matchbox and wearing a 'Kiss the Cook' apron. He stood over a large black grill that by the looks of it were filled up to the brim with coal. "Oh my, you don't suppose he'd actually try to light that, do you?" Mrs. Weasley asked bringing a hand up to her mouth. Just then, he scratched a thin match along the box, jumping when a flame appeared.

"I'd imagine he would." Hermione said quietly. Mrs. Weasley tightened her grip on her wand and ran out to door.

Hermione started after but stopped when she met Ron at the stairs. "Mum, what's for din--"

"Not now dear, your father's about to burn his eyebrows off." Mrs. Weasley said in a rush before she was out the door.

Ron looked startled and glanced off at Hermione, whose face was flushed red from the laughter. "Your father has decided to try out the grill Harry gave him for Christmas last year."

"No wonder Mum's in a hurry." He chuckled. Hermione grinned wider when she heard his hearty laugh. True, they hadn't spent much time together, but Hermione could have sworn it's been weeks since she heard Ron laugh. It was then that, at least for a few moments, things started to feel as it did in Hogwarts those three years ago. "I told Harry it was a bad idea. But when does he ever listen to me?"

"Now you realize how I felt every day at Hogwarts. Breaking rules, jumping to conclusions, you two were danger magnets."

Ron finished the last few stairs in two long steps, causing Hermione to have to take few steps backwards at the landing. "Good thing we had you around, eh?" His eyes smiled at her, for the first time in a while. Hermione's stomach flipped a little suddenly. They hadn't been this close since… well since Fred and Angelina's wedding, during their one very short, slow dance. She could still remember the night. That was the last night they were still somewhat kids; months after that she had left on her first trip to America, to start her internship with the Ministry.

"Am I interrupting?" A voice came from the fireplace. Ron's smile fell slightly as he saw Caden stumble out of the corner of his eye. Hermione turned around, hair twirling at her shoulders. She took a few steps towards him, grabbed his hand, and squeezed it. Ron's heart clenched a bit.

They looked picture perfect, the two of them. Ron thought back to the muggle old fairy tales Hermione used to talk of. Her smile was bright and her eyes full of promise. He was her Prince Charming. It didn't matter that Ron was standing there. Her eyes were for the man with the suitcase, the man with the hair, the man with the manners. Not that Hermione deserved any less. Ron knew Caden was a difficult man to beat. As long as he treated Hermione like the princess, like the amazing and bright witch, she was, Ron would just have to suck it up and bear it. Caden made her happy.

"Oh, Caden you're back! We were just talking about our Hogwarts days." Hermione said her smile never leaving her face. "No need to worry."

Once he finished dusting floo powder from his jacket, he slowly bent over to give her a kiss on her forehead. "Ha, I would never." He replied, grinning dimly in Ron's direction and curtly nodding as he did. "Ronald, how have you been? Haven't seen much of you lately. Work taking a lot out of you?"

Ron, who was now frowning in wake of the latest show of affection, didn't quite know how to answer the question. Being a half a head taller than Caden didn't help him feel less intimidated. "Just working on the Cannons game." He said, with no emotion attached to his voice. It took all he had to try to look at Caden instead of Hermione. However, he failed miserably. She was grinning like Crookshanks at the two of them, happy to see them conversing probably. He shrugged and finished, "It's a killer really; losing their game like that."

Caden's hand left Hermione's and found Ron's shoulder. Ron tried not to cringe. "I heard a few men chatting about that with Lee this morning. The Cannons are no Tornadoes, everyone knows that, wasn't expecting much from them were you?" He offered, in a tone that barely anticipated an answer.

"They'll pull through again," He said. "They've always got fans in this house."

Hermione coughed, smiling slightly as Caden took a step away from Ron. "Oh yes, you and the Cannons go back a ways don't you? Well you'll soon realize no one can beat the Tornadoes." He gave Ron and Hermione a cheeky grin.

"Ron I need you to get rid of that blasted grill. Harry will understand. Your father simply cannot comprehend the concept of fire!" She huffed, flinging a dishtowel around in the air as she did. She stopped suddenly at the sight of Caden. "Oh dear, Caden, hello. So sorry about the mess. I understand you'll be staying for dinner?"

"That would be lovely, Mrs. Weasley. Thank you." He charmed, "My parents are very delighted to meet you and your family this weekend."

Molly brightened, "Oh will be splendid. Ron you must make sure you finish your stories before Saturday. There is no chance you'll be missing dinner. Charlie's even flying in! Oh it's been months since we've seem him." Molly rushed, as if realized how much needs to be accomplished in such a short time. "Now wash up, dinner is almost ready. I believe Ginny was going to try to make it tonight as well."

_Please review! All the reviews help keep me going! __ Thanks for reading!_


	3. Family Dinner

_Disclaimer: I do not own anything relating to Harry Potter, I am simply borrowing J.K. Rowling's wonderful characters, history and locations!_

Soon Arthur had found his way back into the kitchen, looking flushed. "Have fun barbequing, Dad?" Ron asked, sharing a smirk with Hermione across the kitchen. She was helping Molly bring the dishes to the center of the table. It was funny how used to the house she was.

"Ah, well, maybe another day. I can't seem to find the manual..." He thought, scratching his head, which was growing balder as the days grew on. "Funny contraption that is though, isn't it? Who would think with a quick flip of the wrist you could make this little thing burst into flames." He grinned as he took the matches out of his pocket, holding them up for Ron to see.

"Maybe Harry can give you a little run through of how to use that. You could make us all dinner one night." Ron added. Mr. Weasley's eyes lit up.

"No more talk of that nonsense! I have a perfectly good meal prepared without the use of those toothpick things. Come on now, supper's on the table." Molly interrupted, ushering everyone to the table.

Caden reached over and pulled Hermione's chair out for her as she loaded the table with the last bowl of beans. "Here you are, my lady." His teeth gleamed as she smiled a thank you. He then took his seat at one of the head's of the table next to Hermione as Molly found herself next to Arthur at the other end.

"Sure make yourself at home…" Ron mumbled as he strolled to the seat across from his mum. "Any idea when Ginny'll be here, Mum?" He started.

"I'm here! I'm here!" A voice called from the living room. "Oh, it smells delicious in here. Did you make the roast beef?"

Everyone turned to see a tall, redhead fumble into the room. Ginny took her scarf off with much difficulty and plopped herself next to Ron. "Of course, training difficult today?" Molly asked passing the beans to Ron.

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Just like every other day. You know, Mum, I've been training for two weeks straight, I'd prefer not to talk about it here, if you don't mind. I feel like I haven't had a meal in ages. Can you pass the potatoes?" She nodded to her dad.

"So Harry was right then? Auror training getting to be too much?" Ron questioned, having missed fighting with his little sister.

"I won't even justify that with a comment. I'm doing quite well with training, thank you." She said, taking a dollop of mashed potatoes. She subtly passed them to Caden before jabbing Ron in the side.

"Ow! What'd you do that for?" He yelped.

"You know exactly why I did that." She muttered. Hermione laughed across the table to herself. But Ron noticed.

"Think that's funny, Hermione?"

"Quite. You're acting like your brothers." She tried to scold but failed as her smile escaped again.

Caden cleared his throat, "How are those brothers of yours? Business going well?"

Molly interjected, "Oh wonderful! Fred and Angelina just bought a new flat and George is able to take on the one above the shop alone. They're trying to open their market globally." She said coolly. Even though Molly would never admit it, they did do the right thing by leaving Hogwarts. Not only was their business booming, but the two of them had begun to settle themselves down.

"Speaking of worldwide… Ron, Viktor owled me a few days ago and told me about your interview with him. Why didn't you tell me? He said it ran front page!" Hermione sparked up, her eyes glaring at Ron.

"He told you about that?" Ron swallowed hard and shrugged. "It wasn't anything really. I just had a few leads; thought I'd use some old connections."

"It was the front page, Ronald! Of course it was something." His mum cued in.

"It was more than connections, you know that. You're a great writer. Do you have a copy I could read?" Hermione asked, taking a bite of her meal. "I forgot to resubscribe to the Prophet last month."

Ron began to blush. "Sure, I'm sure I've got one somewhere." In truth, his article was in the bottom drawer of his dresser upstairs, along with the other big leads and a few snippets about the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures.

"You know, Hermione, I read this wonderful article today; about Jobberknolls." Caden remarked, eyes darting between his fiancée and the redhead.

"Oh, I remember those! They're amazing creatures really. What was the article about?" Hermione asked excitedly. "We saw them in America, very rare to see one in action. They're so quiet."

"It was all about the importance of protecting them. Along with the benefits and uses there are for them in magic, like their role in memory potions. Welsh was thinking about cutting it, but I had to tell him no. It's an important piece of the American and British culture." He said smartly.

Molly smiled slightly, "How nice it must be to be able to reject or support stories like that, Caden. You are doing quite well here, away from home."

Ron muttered, "It's not like he writes the damn things." Luckily, Ginny seemed to be the only one who heard him. Unluckily, this earned him a swift kick under the table.

"Ow!" He bit his lip, and dared not ask what that was for.

"It is quite the honor. I will be the first to say what a great idea it was to fly across the ocean. Things seemed to have worked out perfectly." Caden chuckled, and let his hand grasp Hermione's on top of the table. He squeezed it and Ron watched as Hermione giggled nervously at the public display.

"Oh Caden," She whispered back, embarrassed.

Ron's eyes squared in on their hands, and the smile that he saw on Caden's face. He understood it well. It had been a year and a half since the wedding dance, but Ron remembered the feeling of her hand in his like it was yesterday...

_His mum made brilliant cake. The Burrow had been frantic the last few weeks, getting ready for this spectacle; all of the napkin folding, chair setting, name card writing, and invitation sending was worth it though. Without those napkins and name cards, there would be no cake. And Ron just could not see that happening. He stuffed another large bite into his mouth and looked up at the very tall and very white cake beside him._

_ It had almost fallen over in its journey to the yard. What a tragedy that would have been, Ron shuddered at the thought. His gaze moved out towards the dance floor. Within seconds, he saw her. She was wearing a simple, silver dress. Simple but elegant, and Ron quickly noticed how nicely it fit her soft curves._

_ He could almost feel himself drooling. His eyes found their way to hers, and saw that she was starting at him. Swiftly, he rubbed his sleeve over his mouth, just to be sure. The drooling dog look did not go over well for anyone. _

_ "Good cake?" She asked smiling._

_ "Oh yeah, it's mum's best." He explained, pointing his fork in the direction of his mother who was dancing with his dad. He's never seen that kind of dance before. He looked away quickly, happy to know most of the people here were part of this estranged family too, and he had no reason to be embarrassed. _

"_Yes, your mum worked hard on it. Has to be the largest wedding cake I've ever seen." Ron noticed something different about her as she said this. She almost seemed nervous. Of what, he couldn't be sure. _

_He tried to lighten the mood. "You know mum never stops." He grinned wide, shaking his head slightly. _

"_Didn't your mum ever teach you not to talk with your mouth full?" She said, laughing at him. She swatted at his arm lightly, resting a bit longer than normal. Ron felt his heart skip a beat. Lately, even the smallest thing from her, like saying his name, could get this effect. What she was wearing didn't help much either. _

"_Sorry." He mumbled. He knew his ears must look like tomatoes by now, but he tried not to dwell on it. So he did whatever would have done in this situation, change the subject. "I can't believe Fred's—" _

"_You could make it up to me." Hermione interrupted. _

_Ron's eyebrows crinkled in confusion. He wasn't sure what he was making up for exactly._

"_For making me see your dessert…in your mouth." She explained. He still was a bit confused but decided to go along with it and nodded slowly. "You could, ask me to dance?" She finished. _

_Ron wasn't sure if he heard her right. The last chance they had had to dance was the Yule Ball, and of course, that didn't go very well. He wasn't a good dancer, the reason for that could be seen by the many redheads on the dance floor already. He didn't necessarily want to add to the mess. But… Hermione would be leaving soon. How many chances would he have after that?_

"_I think I could do that. I need to keep an eye on Harry anyway. He's been getting much too close to my baby sister." Ron confirmed. Which, on some part, was true. Ginny was more so the one to worry about though. She'd been following him around all night, trying to get him to listen. _

_Pushing aside the fear in the pit of his stomach, Ron grabbed Hermione's hand and pulled her onto the floor. However, he seemed to have forgotten how to begin. He stared at their hands for a few seconds, trying to decide what to do next, when Hermione took charge. Feeling more than awkward in his steps, Ron chitchatted without much thought for a few minutes. He tried to follow along with the beat. _

_Concentrating hard, Ron was shocked when he felt something crash into his back. He yelped as he was forced to close the gap between him and Hermione. "Oops, sorry Ronnie-kins." George smirked. Ron's shock turned to angry in a flash as he heard Fred say something to Hermione as well a few inches away. _

_Both his brothers pulled away and left the two stumbling for balance. Ron's hands instinctively grabbed Hermione sides as she fell into him. He breathed a sigh of relief as they steadied. Then he felt her body so very close to his. He could feel her breath in dramatically, and met her gaze. That same nervous look flooded her eyes, along with something else. _

_Ron didn't trust himself, he stepped back quickly and mumbled, "Bloody tossers." Before he knew what he was doing, he started to apologize. _

_Hermione just straightened herself up, and smiled. "It's okay. I just hate when they call me Hermy." Ron wasn't sure what she meant but laughed a bit anyway. He loved her unfailing confidence. Nothing could embarrass her it seemed. _

Funny how long ago that was. So much had happened since then. The rest of the dinner took on talk of Charlie's homecoming, just in time for the wedding. When they finished, the lot found their way to the small living room and chatted lightly. Caden and Hermione sat on the love seat, Caden's arm draped over Hermione's shoulder as she read. Arthur had found his way back in from the kitchen and was in a heated discussion about muggle things with Caden. Ron sat at the fireplace, trying to concentrate on him and Ginny's game of wizard's chess.

It was crazy how easily Caden got under his skin, even if he wasn't talking directly to him.

"It's the strangest thing I'd ever seen. Almost like magic itself." Caden exclaimed. Arthur leaned closer from the stool he was seated on in front of Caden. "You just clap, and it turns on or off."

"What an intelligent device. Are you sure it's not just an American thing?" Arthur asked, rubbing his finger over his chin in thought. "I've never heard of it before."

"Oh no, it's a globally muggle thing. Hermione's got one, too, for reading." Caden said as he nodded in Hermione's direction. Her nose was still deep within her book. "I've used it even."

That was the part that caught Ron's attention. He knew this clapper device well. It was in fact a gift from him and Harry last Christmas. He also knew where she had put it in her apartment, because he had been the one to do so. It sat on the right hand side of her bed, perfect for nighttime reading she had said. Ron's grit his teeth. "Bishop, B4."

Ron hated the thought of Caden using that lamp, knowing full well when he would have probably used it. Sure, Ron had made it around the block a few times. But the thought of Hermione and Caden? He was still digesting that.

"Ron," Ginny interrupted his thoughts. "If you aren't going to play, I've got places to be." She pushed back from the table and laid against the back of her cushy chair.

"If you're in such a hurry, leave." He scoffed.

Ginny glared at him and started to stand up. "Anyone want to play with a sore loser, the chair's open." She called out to the rest of her family.

"You were not winning!" Ron gritted back.

"Look at the board, Ron. Really?" Ginny shouted back as she went to see her mum in the kitchen.

Ron looked down and his eyes widen. She was right, how had that happened? Ginny was horrible at chess. Even worse, when it was Ron she played. He supposed his head hadn't exactly been in the right place though.

"I'll play you, Ron. I've been told I'm pretty good." Caden boasted subtly, and unhinged himself from Hermione. Her eyes caught Ron's eyes. He grinned like a bobcat and she scolded him with a fiery look.

"Really? Pretty good's not exactly going to cut it." Ron said coolly as Caden replaced Ginny in the seat across from him. He sat his cup of coffee down and rubbed his hands together.

"Oh really?" Caden challenged. "You think you can't be beat?"

"No one has yet. What can I say? I seem to be able to put myself in the game; to be one with the pieces so to speak, particularly the knight." Ron laughed, when he caught Hermione's eyes again. She was trying hard not to smile. "How about you, Hermione? You seem to connect most with the Queen's side castle, right?."

She let out a laugh, her eyes shining. "I suppose so."

"We'll see about that." Caden said coldly, noticing there was a joke he was unaware of. When Hermione went back to her book, his mouth turned into a slight sneer and he almost whispered, "You can do whatever you want with your knight. Besides, Hermione is always amazed at the wonders I can do with my bishop."


	4. Some Girl Advice

_Author's Note: Thank you all for reviewing, I really appreciate it. I just wanted to quick answer the question about the DH kiss. The kiss as well as some obvious deaths did not happen for the purpose of this story._

Ron lay in his bed that night, staring at the ceiling. He hadn't known what to say in response to Caden's remark. That was the first time Caden had been brave enough to taunt Ron, let alone within ear shot of Hermione. What he would have given for Hermione to hear that comment. He could just imagine the wild look in her eyes as she shouted and scolded Caden for making up such a story. Unless of course, it was true; then she would have flamed up like a lobster, shaken her head and walked out of the room. Ron didn't like thinking about that response.

Of course he had beat him. After those words fell out of his mouth, Ron wanted nothing more than to cream Caden. He wasn't very good at all. Most of his moves were too defensive to accomplish much. A classic mistake. The game was over in less than 15 minutes.

Although, after the 'checkmate' was said, Ron's victory hadn't lasted long. Caden let out a sigh and began to rise from the chair. The sudden movement caught Hermione's attention as she looked up smiling.

"Finished already?" Her gaze fell onto Ron, who shrugged with a slight smirk. "Still undefeated then?"

"But of course." Ron boasted, turning to face fireplace and warm himself.

"You were always so modest. Your day will come, I'm sure." Hermione rolled her eyes. Caden had gone to the doorway, grabbed his coat, and was flinging it around his shoulders.

"Ready, Hermione?" He asked sternly. "We'll have a rematch sometime Ron. You can count on that."

Hermione, maybe sensing the tension, closed her book and got ready to leave. "Oh Caden, don't be such a sore loser. Ron's had a lot of pract-" There was a loud pop before she finished, and an empty space where Caden had been standing.

Hermione frowned, "I'm sorry. He's got a horrible temper, a bit like you in a way." She turned to Ron and smiled slightly. "Are you sure you can't leave work early tomorrow? Harry's finally in town, it would be nice for the three of us in the same room again."

"Dress shopping isn't really my thing." Ron made a funny face, trying to hide his grimace. "Although I'm not sure how you roped Harry into that either."

"Well we have a lot to catch up on. Especially now that we're free to talk about you." She grinned at him as she took out her wand. "Goodnight, Ron." With another loud pop, she was gone.

It was a rather depressing end to the night. Even more depressing was the fact that Ron hadn't finished his piece for the Prophet yet. With sleep far off, he reached over to his table and grabbed some parchment.

Ron was staring intently at the page, biting on his quill, when he heard a slight knock on the door. "Who's there?" He grumbled.

The door pushed open slowly. "Hey, it's just me. I thought I heard you still up." Ginny said, peering into the room.

Ron's eyebrows furrowed at her. "Okay." He said, letting his gaze slide back to his paper. He hadn't done much to tidy up the place. Clothes, boxes of old books, and a few half-eaten particles of food lay skewed across the floor. Ginny stepped gingerly through the mess and almost fell on the foot of his bed.

"This… is disgusting." She complained, hopping onto the foot of his bed, making sure her feet were far from whatever lay on the floor. One would think she would be use to the mess by now, after living with six older brothers for most of her childhood.

"I don't remember inviting you in." Ron mumbled. "What do you want?"

"I couldn't sleep." She said simply, picking at the yarn on his quilt. "Why are you still up?" She asked, glanced half-heartily at the paper on his lap.

"Work to do." He said shortly

"Oh," She sat there, eyes glued on the blanket. Ron waited, unable to concentrate. A few minutes passed without a sound. Ron already knew what Ginny was about to ask. It never fails, "Have you spoken to Harry?" She said, quietly, almost at a whisper.

"Yes." He scratched a few notes on the page, trying hard to look busy.

"And, how is he?"

"Fine." He tried to hide his impatience and tapped his quill on his mouth. This had been the third mention of Harry from Ginny in 3 hours.

"Ron, come on. You have to know more than that?" Ginny tried, glaring at him.

"It's not like it really matters anyway. You shouldn't be waiting around for him." He rushed. Ron was tired of telling his sister why she couldn't be with Harry. Because, frankly, he didn't understand it either. But Harry had made it perfectly clear he didn't want a relationship yet.

There was silence. Ron looked up from his paper, and realized then that he probably should have thought a bit more carefully about what he said. Ginny looked as if she wanted to Bat-Boogey his head off. Perhaps he had been a bit too harsh. "Right, and maybe you should stop pining after a married woman."

"W-what?" Ron spluttered, slamming his quill onto the bed. "Don't go turning this around. I have no idea what you're talking about."

She sneered slightly, "Oh Ron, you've been telling me I'm pathetic for ages now. Take a look in the mirror." Her hands lifted up in the air, full of frustration.

"I'm not-" He tried.

"Come off it." Ginny interrupted, pointing a finger at him. "Caden is a perfectly decent guy but you seem to find anything and everything to complain about. It's just like Viktor and Jeremy. You're just pissed at yourself for being too cowardly to do something first. So don't go telling me I'm running after the hopeless. At least I tried."

"I tried…" Ron started. Ginny rolled her eyes and let herself fall completely back on the foot of his bed. "What, I have! That dance at the wedding. All those letters to America the first trip she took. Nothing came back for me. One or two letters, addressed to the both of us."

"You wrote a total of three. You gave up on the rest, remember?" She made an exasperated sound. "What happened to us? When did I become as pathetic as you?"

"You need to leave now." Ron huffed. Feeling agitated, he grabbed for his quill again and made a few scratches on his page. "Get out."

Ginny hopped up on her elbows and looked at Ron intently. She saw the despair and the surrender in his misty eyes even as they tried hard to focus on the work in front of him. "Can I give you some advice?"

Ron groaned, "Stop. I'm working."

"Right," Ginny reached over and snatched the parchment from Ron's lap. "You've written three words. No wonder you're such a big-time writer." She smirked.

"At least I write, and the pieces I work with are completely mine. I don't take the credit for others." His voice grew resentful, his mind clearly somewhere unpleasant.

"Look at yourself. See, this is exactly what I mean. You sit here and complain about how horrible Caden is. He's an editor, Ron! It's his job to work with other people's articles. He's not paid to write his own. Stop comparing, you two are completely different." She tossed the pad of paper back to him as he glared at her. "All I'm saying is that you need to act on these feelings. Don't just sit around here."

"Out. Now."

"Fine, but try and get what I said through your thick skull. Don't be so pitiful, and stop sulking. Do something." She tried again, with no avail. Ron stared at his page, ignoring the words coming from her mouth. "You're so stubborn. You'll never get anywhere with that." She said as she pushed herself up and hopped through the mess of the floor.

"Bye." Ron mumbled as his sister clicked the door shut. At least she was smart enough not to slam. His mind ran through her so called advice.

He wasn't being pathetic. He had tried. Hadn't he? Hermione had left for America and barely written him. Ginny said she was busy, but Ron never understood how she could be too busy to write. And then came Rebecca. Ron shook his head at the thought. He really believed they were getting somewhere. Things had gotten a bit rocky when Hermione came home, but once she left for her second trip back to America, it was smooth sailing. At least that was his opinion, apparently, he had been wrong.

Why did his relationship with Rebecca have to be easier than his friendship with Hermione? Why couldn't he find some sort of solid ground? Even though he had liked Rebecca and missed her occasionally, it couldn't compare to the loss he felt when Hermione was away. Or the heartbreak he felt that day in the office with Neville when he learned of the engagement. Ron couldn't understand it. Why did love have to be so complicated?

Maybe Ginny was right. He couldn't very well sit here and wonder for the rest of his life. He needed to do something, something that would take the pain away.

~*~

"Thanks for coming with me today, Harry. Molly and I had found a few decent dresses in one of the bridal magazines for this place. They're quite inexpensive too, not sure why." Hermione laughed, as she swung her purse at her side. They were walking along the street to Madame Julia's Bridal Shop in Diagon Alley.

"I don't think I'll be too much help." Harry joked. Hermione gazed up at him as he said this. He looked rougher these days. Hermione could see the bags under his eyes from the lack of sleep that came with being a first year Auror and the short stubble framing the bottom half of his face.

"Well I would have asked Ginny to come with…" Harry turned to look at her sharply, "I figured that would be a little awkward." She finished.

He relaxed and shrugged. "I suppose it would have been." Was all he said.

"Have you talked to her lately?" Hermione tried.

His jaw tightened noticeably. "She owled a while back. Haven't had a lot of time to write back. You know how it is."

"You seemed to be able to write Ron and me just fine." She pushed. "She's been asking about you, you know."

"Well she shouldn't be. Is this the place?" He asked, nodding towards the shop sign above.

Hermione looked up, cursing her luck. She would have to find a way to bring Ginny up again later, maybe more tactfully as well. "Looks like it. Is it odd that I'm nervous?"

Harry grinned at her, and laid a hand on her shoulder, reassuringly. "Seems perfectly normal to me. I'd be dead scared of a shop full of dresses, bags and shoes too. After you."

Hermione had no idea where to start first. Luckily, she wasn't Madame Julia's first customer. Within minutes, Hermione found herself stuffed inside a dressing room with plenty of dresses to keep her company. Most of which took her a while to figure out.

"How are you doing in there?" Harry called from the couch outside. He had been sitting there for what felt like 5 hours.

"I'm not entirely sure." Hermione said as she struggled to find the buttons amongst the feathers of the most recent dress. After a few moments, she opened the door to find Harry examining a pair of purple high-heeled shoes. She cleared her throat, "Looking for a new style?"

"No," He said throwing the shoe back in its box. His eyes grew wide as they found their way to the dress she had on. "Yikes, you may want to though." He exclaimed, holding back laughter.

"Harry! It can't be that bad." She scolded. But the mirror said another story. The dress looked even more humorous on than it did on the rack. Feathers clung to the strapless top, and continued down the train in back. A duck, that was the first thing to come to her mind.

"Oh my," Hermione mumbled.

"Oh, dear! You look beautiful!" Madame Julia squawked as she rounded the corner. "What do you think, Mr. Potter? Doesn't your friend look breathtaking?" Her head bobbed in enthusiasm. The beehive bun on top her head threatened to collapse. Hermione could hardly take her eyes off it.

"Oh yes," Harry tried. He clasped his hand to his mouth to keep from erupting with laughter.

"He's speechless!" Hermione called out, she smiled sweetly at Madame Julia. "However, I suppose I should probably come back with one of my female friends. Men can't be great judges of this sort of thing." She giggled innocently.

"Oh yes, very true. I have many other styles with the feathers as well, or sparkles!" Her eyes danced with excitement. "You know where to find me. Please just leave the dress in the room. I'll take care of it. That one's a top seller!" The door chimed brightly. She winked at the two of them and whisked away.

"Oo, she has sparkles!" Harry mocked with fake enthusiasm, a grin plastered on his face.

"Oh stop. Did she say this was a top seller?" Hermione said with a raised eyebrow.

~*~

"_I'll take a-," Hermione pondered, staring up at the menu. American's had so many choices. "Caramel Macchiato? Is that good?"_

_ "It's delicious." A smooth voice came from beyond her. She turned to see a tall man in a gray business suit standing behind her, smiling. "I would recommend it."_

_ Hermione laughed, and turned back to the cashier. "Okay, one caramel macchiato then." She handed the teenage girl behind the counter a few American bills and stepped out of line to wait. She was grabbing a few napkins when she heard the man's voice again._

_ "A long way from home, aren't you?" He said, strolling her way. "Britain, right?"_

_ Hermione blushed at the attention. "I grew up in Oxfordshire, actually. Am I that obvious?"_

_ "The accent kind of gave you away." He grinned at her, his teeth bright white. "I'm Caden Miff, coffee extraodinaire." He said reaching for Hermione's hand to shake. _

_ She took it and replied, "I'm Hermione Granger. It's nice to meet you."_

_ His eyes grew a little wider as the light bulb turned on. Hermione shifted her weight, wishing her coffee was ready. She glanced away from the friendly face, waiting for the inevitable. "The Hermione Granger? The brightest member of the infamous trio?"_

_ She smiled shyly and nodded. "Yes, that's me." _

_A frumpy woman slid a cup over the counter to Hermione, followed by one for Caden. "Two caramel macchiatos, thank you and have a good day." She said robotically and turned back to the machines. _

_Caden took his cup and Hermione's, "Not to be forward, but would you like to take these somewhere and talk? I, like most of us around here, have always been curious about the trio that saved us all."_

_She reached over to grab her coffee from his grasp. "I'm actually meeting someone in a few minutes. Sorry. Thank you for the invitation and advice though." She smiled, gesturing towards the cup in her hand. Slowly, she took a short sip of her coffee and felt instantly warmed. "You were right, it is delicious."_

_He smirked, and brought his own cup to his lips. "No problem. It was nice meeting you Hermione." He bowed his head slightly in her direction and winked, before turning towards the door. "Maybe I'll see you around." _

_Hermione felt the blush creeping up her neck. Since the news got out about the death of Voldemort and the trio of heroes who had worked to destroy him, she had gotten so much unwanted attention. She never would understand how Harry had dealt with it for so long. She smiled shyly and turned away, pretending to sip her drink. She wasn't quite sure if he was flirting or simply curious as he had said. Ever since Terry Boot 7__th__ year, Hermione hadn't had much time for men aside from Harry and Ron, of course. _

"_Hermione!" She heard a familiar voice shout. Hermione turned to find bright green eyes smiling at her. _

"_Harry!" She smiled, as he wrapped his arms around her. "Is it crazy that I've missed you?"_

"_Nah, three weeks is much too long. Already ordered?" He asked nodding to the coffee in her hand. "What'd you get?"_

"_Some macchiato thing… It's good. I'll go grab us a table." _

_Within a few minutes, Harry had found Hermione sitting in the back corner of the café. She was twisting her cup around, absently looking out the window. "I think you have an admirer." He replied as he slid down across from her. _

_She broke out of her trance at once. "What?"_

"_A man at the counter asked me to give this to you. Seemed to know you'd be with me, I guess." Harry's eyebrows crinkled. "Here," He pushed a small piece of paper her way; it was folded many times. The person who wrote it must like to be precise._

_ Hermione took it gingerly, as though it were a Howler. Slowly, her tiny fingers began unfolding, three, four times. A small, elegant script wrote:_

Hermione, it was a pleasure meeting you  
If you thought my taste in coffee was  
extraordinary, you need to try a true  
American delight: how about a chili dog? Owl me  
and I'd be happy to enlighten you.  
-Caden

_Hermione's eyes danced across the note, and her lips turned up slightly when she finished. Before looking up at Harry, she read through once more. _

_ "Hermione, are you still with me? What'd he say?" Harry laughed._

_ "He wants to me to try a chili dog? And said he'd be happy to take me to get one." She said simply, throwing the note in her pocket quickly._

_ "A chili dog?" Harry's eyebrows rose. "A bit forward, don't you think?"_

_ "Harry!" She swatted at his arm. "That's horrible!" _

_He grinned, and shrugged away from her swats. "Sorry, it was too easy."_

_ She shook her head. "You sound like Ron. That was so inappropriate." He gave her a look, and she smiled as well. "It does sound somewhat… odd, doesn't it?" _

"Here you go, Hermione." Harry said, sliding a large mug her way across the table. "Are you okay? You seem a bit out of it."

"Thank you," Before answering she took a sip of the butterbeer in front of her. Something about this drink always brought her back to the good ol' days in Hogwarts. It was all so simple then. "I'm fine. I was just thinking about the last time we were able to sit down together and have a drink. Do you remember that café in America?"

He laughed, "Of course, how could I forget your chili dog invitation? Quite the creative fellow you've got there."

"Silly really, it all started in a place like this." She smiled. "It was nice catching up with you there. I miss it sometimes. America that is. Can I ask you a question? You have to be completely honest."

"I'm always honest with you, Hermione. Give it a go." Harry fell back on his chair seat with ease. Probably thinking she would ask about his travels, or her job, maybe even Caden. Poor sap.

"Remember you said you would answer…" He rolled his eyes at her hesitation. "Why won't you talk to Ginny?"

"Not fair." He closed his eyes slowly. His voice shook a little as he gathered his thoughts. "If I thought you'd understand, I would have told you sooner. You're going to say it's stupid."

"Well," Hermione began, cupping her mug in her hands. "That's probably because it is." He opened her eyes and raised his eyebrow at her.

Hermione smiled, "At least try. I'll try and be nice."

Harry sighed. "I'm going to get you for this… Someday."

"You're stalling."

Harry took a long drink of his butterbeer, probably wishing it was something stronger. "At first, it was because of Voldemort, obviously. And after that, Ginny wanted to try again. But, I started training and traveling. You know better than most, how dangerous an Auror's job is. I guess I figured it would be too difficult for her. For me."

Harry stared at his bottle while he said this; picking fruitlessly at the wrapper smiling back at him. "I've hurt enough people, you know?"

"Even though you two aren't together, Ginny still feels hurt when you aren't there. Everyday you're away, everyday you don't respond, it hurts a little more." Hermione tried. Harry looked up to meet her eyes.

"Sounds like Ron when you were in America. You won't believe how many letters I have from him, asking if I had seen you…" Harry said, a grin playing on his lips.

"You're changing the subject. I at least wrote Ron when I could. You however, pass on the burden of answering Ginny's questions whatever way we can." She tried to sound stern. Her thoughts were torn between asking what Harry meant about Ron and focusing on the issue at hand. Ginny deserved the answers.

Harry sat up straighter. "At least she's safe. She's going to get a nice, safe Healer job and forget all about me." He smiled slightly, hiding the frown he could feel coming on.

Hermione shook her head, confused. Her bushy hair moved as one, as she was unable to tame it after trying on all those veils this morning. The static was inevitable. "She's not training to be a Healer. Didn't Ron tell you?" Harry's silence answered her question. Although she was nervous about his reactions, she continued. He needed to know. "She's currently at Auror training, Harry. Can you guess why?"

His eyes widened and his mouth snapped shut. Hermione could see him holding his tongue, trying to calm himself. Why were both her best friends so short-tempered? "No. Ron hadn't told me that bit yet." He said through gritted teeth.

"Can't imagine why not." Hermione mumbled. Harry's hands were in fists next to his mug.

"She can't do that. I told her how difficult it was! How dangerous!" Harry exclaimed to no one in particular.

"This is Ginny, Harry. Do you really think that she can't handle it? You remember the Final Battle, or how about that night in the Department of Mysteries." He glared at her, knowing what she said was true.

"But--" Harry started.

"But, nothing. You won't have the excuse anymore. She's in just as much danger as you. And you two would be together." Hermione explained. "I think you'll agree she thought it all out quite well. She loves you, that much is clear."

Harry allowed his head to fall into his hands. He sighed, and looked up at Hermione through sad eyes. "I suppose, I should talk to her."

_Please review! All the reviews help keep me going! __ Thanks for reading!_


	5. Shotgun?

_Sorry it's taken me so long to update. I've been busy with school. I'll hopefully be getting the next chapter up relatively soon!!_

For the last few days, the whole Weasley house had been bustling around talking about white dresses, cakes, and rings. Ron had been able to avoid most of it, subtly leaving the room at the opportune moment and coming up with new work assignments every hour. But today, today caught him off guard. For when he walked into his kitchen instead of finding a table full of crispy bacon and fresh biscuits, Ron Weasley stumbled onto a remarkable sight.

Fred and George were seated side by side; both were stuffing large white envelopes. Ron smirked, wondering what force could have possibly gotten his siblings to sit so still and be so mature.

"Ronniekins," George warned.

"Not a word." Fred finished, pressing his palm hard against the lip of one envelope.

"Ron! You're just in time. Help Hermione address, will you?" Molly pleaded, rising from her seat. "Take my spot. I need to go find Ginny." Hermione looked up and beamed at her friend.

"Oy, mum. I haven't even had breakfast yet." Ron whined.

Hermione looked up and set down her quill. "Oh, we all know you can't function without your three helpings of porridge, Ron. Grab some toast and get over here."

Ron glared softly, taking a large bite of an apple he grabbed from the cluttered counter.

"Please." Hermione said with a sweet smile. The sun was shining through the window, framing her auburn hair with golden glow. His heart leaped out of sync.

"How are you sending these out already? You haven't even set a date. Isn't it a bit too soon?" He questioned, making his way towards Hermione's chair and taking another bite. He stood behind her, trying to see the invitations from behind her mass of curls.

"Not exactly. We decided on a date last night actually. March 19." She rushed. "And now I have all of this to do in such a short time." Her arms flew up in frustration as she finished another address.

Ron coughed up the apple chunk he was chewing, stumbling to stand in front of her. "Hermione… that's in 2 months." He said bewildered. "That's insane." Fred and George exchanged glances across the table. "You can't possibly… How can you marry a guy less than a year after you started dating him? You have time. What's the rush?" He glowered at her; his words were full of anger and desperation.

She seemed untouched by his fierce look. "I have no choice. I received an owl from the Ministry last night. I go back to America in April. Caden wants us to marry before I leave." Hermione picked up her quill again, and began writing. "And I'd appreciate you being a little more supportive."

"Supportive?" Ron said, baffled.

"Yes, Ron. Supportive. You know when you're sensitive to your friend's feelings and help her get to where she wants to be." Hermione gazed up at him through her lashes, her mouth in a straight line. Her quill had stopped moving.

"Not if your friend's daft. Which, you are… right now." He kept her gaze, standing there in the middle of the kitchen. There was an eerie silence, both of them too stubborn to back down. Fred began to whistle under his breath.

Hermione was fuming. Her cheeks were growing redder under Ron's disappointing stare. She began to feel tears building up behind her eyes. Before she could say anything she would regret, she had scooted the chair back and rushed out of the kitchen, being sure to push past Ron in the process.

Ron grumbled to himself, falling into the seat beside his brother. He picked up an invitation, turned it over in his hands and muttered, "She's gone mad."

"Something smells fishy here, doesn't it George?" Fred said, sniffing the air as he finished closing another envelope.

"It sure does, Fred. A bit too convenient, don't you think?" George answered, staring at the place Hermione had just disappeared from.

"What are you two babbling about?" Ron retorted, flicking the paper onto a pile in the center of the table.

"Suddenly, she needs to leave for America."

"And simply has to have a wedding beforehand?" Fred supplied. "I think there's a muggle word for this…"

"It's escaping me." George pondered.

"SHOTGUN!" Fred yelled. Ron jumped, and his hand knocked over a bottle of ink; causing it to splatter all over the cream-colored paper.

"Merlin! Look what you've done!" Ron groaned. He pulled his wand from his pocket to clean it up. "What are you on about?"

Fred and George smirked, and shook their heads. "You may have to ask, Harry. Or perhaps Hermione, I can't remember exactly how to describe it…" George trailed off.

"Ron?" Harry ventured, poking his head into his best friend's room. Ron hadn't heard him, or chose to ignore him. He was squatting by his dresser, fumbling through the bottom drawer. Papers crumbled and fell out of Ron's grasp. He tried again. "Ron, you there?"

"Merlin! Harry," Ron's head snapped up, almost causing him to lose his balance. "You're back."

Harry chuckled. "Yeah, Hermione told you I was back yesterday, didn't she?"

"Yeah, mate. Just forgot." Ron said as he piled miscellaneous papers and stuffed them into the cluttered drawer.

Harry scratched his head and said, "I can see you're busy. What are you doing?"

Ron quickly stuffed the rest of the papers into place and slammed the drawer shut. In a flash, he was standing with his hands in his pockets, leaning up against the wardrobe. "Organizing." He stated with a rush.

"I'm not even going to ask…" Harry said, eyeing the dresser suspiciously. "Up for a game?" He wriggled the folded ches board in his hand up in the air. "It's been a while."

With a shrug, Ron made a space on his messy floor for the two of them to sit. The both of them were quiet, as with every game Ron played. He had to have his wits about him. There was no way he was going to let what happened with his and Ginny's game, happen again. No distractions.

Harry's eyes were strictly on the game, as they always had to be, if he ever wanted to win. "So, how have you been? Hermione and I missed you yesterday." He asked.

Ron shrugged, "Pawn D-3. Work has been killing me lately. So much to do, and so little time. Did I miss anything good?" Pig hooted softly in his cage by the door.

Harry shook his head. "Not really. You're mum's a bit mental though, in her fashion choices." He laughed. "Hermione had on this one dress; it was filled head to toe with pearls. Or at least what looked like pearls."

"Yeah? I'm sure she looked lovely in it though." Ron said absently.

Harry glanced at his friend, who was staring at the board intently. "Yes she did. Very beautiful. Caden's a lucky man." Harry stated nonchalantly, testing the waters.

"You there, move." Ron commanded his knight. "Yeah, lucky guy." He mumbled, his fists slowly clenching. "He's a bit of an egghead, though, really."

Harry grinned, "I figured as much. Your letters weren't exactly full of flattery. But he's with Hermione now. We're stuck with him I guess."

"Right." Ron shifted, waiting for Harry to make a move. After more than a few minutes, he looked up to catch his friend staring at him. "Your move, Harry."

"No, Ron… I think it's your move." Harry said coolly. Ron's eyebrows furrowed. He was about to say something, when Harry cut him off. "I've been Hermione and your best friend for eight years now. I've seen everything. Remember the Viktor Krum figurine? The canaries? What are you waiting for?"

The redhead pushed back from the board, leaning against his bed. "You sound like Ginny. There's not much I can do. She picked him."

Harry raised his eyebrow. "Right, because she felt that she had another choice? Something tells me you haven't tried hard enough."

Ron laughed. "And you tried with Ginny? I still don't get that."

Harry blinked a few times surprised by the change of topic. Ron wasn't one to talk about his sister's love life. "I'm not saying I'm an expert on anything like that. We both have to get our acts together." After a few moments of silence, Harry's eyes grew wide behind the circular frames, remembering. "Why didn't you tell me she was training to be an Auror in your letters?" Harry questioned.

"She made me promise I wouldn't. I did try and talk her out of it. All of us did. But, you know how she is when she's angry… It's scary." Ron said with a shiver. "I tried, she gave me that look."

"Oh, the look? I don't like that look." Harry stated, leaning back. "What did you say? Did she hex you?"

"She wouldn't listen to me. I even reminded her about what you said, about how difficult it is." Ron winced. "That didn't help the cause too much though. I was lucky she didn't' have her wand handy. Who knows what kind of curses they're teaching her."

"You brought me up? Rotten move on your part. She hates me now." He let out a sigh, picking up a piece from the forgotten game in front of him.

Ron laughed. "She doesn't hate you, mate. She would probably like to, with all the ups and downs you two go through, but she doesn't. She just wants a chance."

Harry dropped the pawn as it yelled at him to make his move. He smiled slightly. "Easier said than done. What do you think I should do?"

Ron's eyebrows rose as he leaned against his night table. "I dunno, I don' t even know what happened to begin with. Not my area of expertise, obviously."

"Mine either."

They both sat quiet for a few minutes. "Well, what'd Hermione tell you to do?"

Harry laughed, "She said I need to talk to her."

Ron nodded and said matter -of-factly, "I think you should do what Hermione says. She's, you know, a girl. She knows these things…"

"I figured I'd be stuck with that answer." Harry shook his head. "Your move."

After a few moves, when silence had fallen on them. Ron bit his lip. "Hey Harry, what's a shotgun?"

"Just a type of muggle weapon," Harry shrugged. "Why?"

"Well, Fred and George were saying something earlier… about Hermione having a shotgun wedding. I don't-" Ron was interrupted as Harry seemed to be choking. Harry leaned back, covering his mouth with hand.

"I'd rather not think about that, thanks." He coughed, running his other hand through his messy hair.

"Think about what? You said it was some kind of muggle device." Ron asked, confused and suddenly embarrassed.

Harry laughed. "Well yeah, but when you pair that with the word wedding. It gets a whole new meaning. Muggles say it when a couple is marrying quickly. Before the 9 months are over." Harry said slowly, hoping he wouldn't have to elaborate.

Ron stared at him, eyes squinted, trying to decipher.

"A bun in the oven, Ron. Do I have to say more? Please don't make me. "

Harry knew precisely when the light clicked on in Ron's head. His eyes grew wide, shell shocked for a few moments. "Bloody hell. Hermione?" Ron shouted.

Harry tried to continue the game. But Ron wouldn't move. "It's Fred and George-" Harry began.

"Do you," Ron asked quietly. "Do you think it's true? I mean, it makes sense. This is completely outside Hermione's normal behavior…" He trailed off.

Harry cracked a smile. "Come on, you can't let Fred and George get to you that easily. They're probably laughing their heads off right now. Let's play."

Ron shrugged his mind still obviously somewhere else. "I suppose you're right. I don't much feel like a game anymore though. Raincheck?" Before Harry could answer, Ron shot up and started towards the door.

"Ron… Where are you going?" Harry asked suspiciously.

He stopped at that door, his hand on the doorknob. "Getting some answers."

_Please review! All the reviews help keep me going! __ Thanks for reading!_


	6. Awkward

_Disclaimer: I do not own anything relating to Harry Potter, I am simply borrowing J.K. Rowling's wonderful characters, history and locations!_

Hermione had stomped up the few short steps in the Burrow to the old room she used to share with Ginny all those summers at Hogwarts. She had started leaving odds and ends there, along with various wedding items she had been working on with Mrs. Weasley. Hermione had never been one of those girls who cared about pearls and lace, but working on the wedding had helped put her mind at ease.

After the mild fight in the kitchen with Ron, she knew she had to keep her mind on something happier, something brighter. So, within a few moments, she found herself engrossed in the latest issue of _Wizardly Weddings_. Her eyes scanned the pages, looking for anything that might interest her in the slightest. She busily flipped through the pages, stopping as her eyes narrowed in on a shiny, moving picture.

The bride was dressed beautifully in a flowing white dress and a pearled tiara atop her straight golden hair. She was smiling, laughing as her father tightened his hold on her arm. The two seemed so happy, even though her father's eyes were glistening and full of slight uneasiness behind his smile. Hermione felt her eyes begin to water.

_It was late. She knew that much. The sun had stopped showing through the lace curtains that framed Ginny's bedroom window several hours ago. The trees outside were crashing against each other from the howling wind. She could hear raindrops beginning to fall quietly against walls of the Burrow. The weather seemed to understand her feelings. Hermione wanted nothing more than to lash out at someone, something or perhaps just simply cry. _

_ Kingley had left after breakfast and Hermione had not seen anyone since. How could she? What could any of them possibly do? She could already see the pity clouding their eyes. They meant well, and it wasn't as though they didn't understand. But Hermione couldn't bear their condolences, not yet. _

_Tears welded behind her eyes; she would have thought she was through crying. The past 12 hours had been filled with nothing else. She wasn't sure why Kingley had been sent with the news. She would have preferred someone she felt a bit more comfortable with, like Professor Lupin or Tonks, to tell her about her parents. _

_They had simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time. A small muggle community was tormented by Death Eaters soon after Hermione had left for her summer visit to the Weasley's. Now it seems, Hermione wouldn't be able to go back to her home; not that there was much left. She was an orphan, just like Harry. _

'_Harry was lucky to be so young, he hardly remembers Lily and James.' Hermione thought bitterly, and immediately regretted it. Her parents wouldn't want her to act in such a manner. She was lucky to have the memories she did. At least she had gotten some time with them. Her tears broke loose. She covered her face with her quilt, trying to hide the sobs that were threatening to escape._

_Thunder clapped outside, causing Hermione to quiver in shock. Something in the walls creaked loudly, and she heard a gentle scratching on the window outside. Hermione's eyes widened. Perhaps it was from her lack of sleep or the unfamiliarity of being alone in the Burrow, but Hermione shot up right in her bed, and flung her feet onto the cold floor. With the quilt tugged tightly around her, she made her way out to the hallway. _

_She wasn't sure why she had gotten out of bed, or where she wanted to go from here. The hall was dark. She peered down the stairs, into the living room. The fire crackled softly as it was slowly dying out. Out of the corner of her eye, Hermione thought she saw something stir in the darkness. Taking a few quiet steps down the stairs, what she saw warmed her instantly. _

_Ron was slumped on an armchair near the fireplace; he had purposely turned his chair to face the staircase. Hermione didn't know if it had been for her sake or not, but either way she found herself moving towards him, unable to control the knots forming in her stomach. His head fell onto his right shoulder, and his arms were resting on the arms of the chair. _

_She didn't want to wake him, but he looked so inviting, and she needed him. Softly she whispered his name. It took a few moments, but suddenly his eyes widened, stunned awake._

"_Hermione!? Are you okay? What are you doing up?" He spluttered. Her heart melted. _

"_I can't sleep." She said simply. "Could I… I mean… would you mind if I sat up with you? I don't want to be alone." She said in a shallow murmur. _

_Ron blinked a few times and caught her eye. The amount of worry and concern she saw in his bright blue eyes scared her. She smiled weakly and looked to the floor. Ron straightened up in his seat. In a tired voice he replied, "Of course. Would you… do you want to move to the couch?" _

_Hermione shook her head. "This is fine. If it's okay with you…" _

_Before he could answer, she found herself budging him over slightly in the chair; Ron tried to squeeze himself as far to the side as possible, unsure of what was considered too close. She quickly surprised him though, by laying her head on his shoulder. They sat awkwardly for a few moments, until Hermione felt Ron reach his arm around her shoulders and pull her a little closer. _

"_Thank you." She mumbled quietly. She sighed, letting herself take in the softness of his t-shirt against her cheek and his comforting aroma, fresh cut grass, soap and the faintest hint of chocolate. _

"_I'm so sorry, Hermione." Ron said hoarsely. He moved his hand to meet the other on her arm, and squeezed her into an awkward hug. Hermione's eyes pricked with tears again; Ron had never hugged her before. "I'm here for you. Harry and I are both here; no matter what." He whispered. _

_Hermione reached her arm across his chest, and held onto his waist. She snuggled in closer, needing the contact, needing to be held by him. His head rested in her mass of curls. They were both silent, each listening intently to the other's breathing. Hermione laid her ear against his chest and quickly took notice of his heartbeat. With a few more deep breaths, Hermione found herself being lulled to sleep._

Hermione wiped the tear away from her cheek in haste. She had forgotten about needing someone to give her away on her wedding day. Her heart ached as she rewatched the picture of the bride and her father. "I suppose it only makes sense that it would be Harry or Ron…" She muttered to herself. In the back of her mind, a voice was telling her to ask the former rather than the latter. Something about Ron giving her away to Caden didn't feel right.

Ron tumbled down the flights of stairs in search of Hermione. He hadn't seen her all morning, not since the invitation fiasco. His insides tightened as he replayed the conversation him and Harry had just had. He couldn't believe that his Hermione could be, well expecting, expecting something that wasn't his. He knew he was being childish and selfish, but the thought had never crossed his mind before. Someday Hermione would be married with children. And the way things were going, those children wouldn't have red hair.

Anger surged through his body as he bounded down the steps, two at a time. Caden was taking too much from him, too fast. He was ripping Ron's dream right out from under him, much sooner than Ron expected. His fists clenched slightly, his eyes determined. Maybe this was the motivation he needed.

"Ron, where are you off to in such a hurry?" Arthur said cheerfully, popping out of the bathroom just as Ron rushed past.

Ron snapped his head back; maybe his father knew where Hermione was. He tried to remove the distressed emotions from his face; however, Ron was not always the best at hiding his feelings. "Dad, have you by chance seen Hermione?" He asked through tensed lips.

Arthur eyed him suspiciously, and scratched his balding head. "I think I saw her in-"

"No, Dad don't tell him." A stern voice, full of vigor interrupted. "This git doesn't deserve to know where she is. Not after the stunt he pulled in the kitchen." Ginny added, making her way up the steps towards the two of them. She stopped a step below Ron, blocking his pass.

Ron glared at his sister. "I don't think that is any of your business. Where is she?"

Ginny raised her eyebrows. "Why? Found a few more words to call her? You don't call a girl daft when she's sending out invitations to her wedding, Ron. You just don't. Apparently, you didn't want to follow my advice from last night. Don't insult her, talk to her."

"That's what I'm about to do. I want to know why she's getting married so early, not that you don't know already." Ron spat.

Ginny put her hands on her hips in a very Mrs. Weasley like fashion. "Oh, really? Enlighten me Ron, why is she getting married so quickly, could it be that her fiancé is a wonderful man who she loves her fiancé and can't wait to spend the rest of her life with?" Her eyes were narrowed at him. The words stung Ron, straight through his beating heart.

Arthur, obviously sensing the tension, lifted his hands to separate the two. "Now, now, there's no need to-"

"She's got a bun in the oven, Ginny!" Ron shouted. Both Ginny and her father's eyes widened. Arthur's hands fell to his side as he took a few steps back.

"Oh dear…" Mr. Weasley started.

"Wh-What did you just say?" Ginny stumbled and shook her head in disbelief.

"You're treading on very dangerous waters, Ronald." Ron's head snapped from glaring at Ginny to this new intruder behind her. His eyes bulged when he saw her.

Hermione's eyes, slightly puffy, were glowering at him. She had wrapped her sweater tightly around her body, her arms crossed as if shielding herself from something. For a moment, Ron could see the hurt flicker across her eyes. He made his heart sink. He hadn't meant to bring it up like this. Stupid, nosy sister.

Ginny twisted around in shock. "Hermione, don't listen to him. He's just a confused and completely barmy soul."

Everyone was quiet for a few moments. Hermione's eyes never left Ron's. He shifted his weight under her stare. "Well…" He began, if it wasn't for Ginny's deadly glare he would have continued to ask the question he was dying to know.

Arthur coughed uncomfortable, taking a few backwards steps up the stairs. "I think I just heard Molly…" He gave a weak smile before turned and jogging upwards.

Hermione shook her head, holding back embarrassed tears that were threatening to fall. "I would prefer if you would keep my private life private from now on Ronald. And perhaps you could learn how to think before you speak." She pushed past him and Ginny.

As she passed, Ginny swatted Ron hard in the shoulder. "Git." She muttered under her breath. "How could you do-"

Hermione cleared her throat and said without turning around again. "And for your information, though I don't see how it is any of her business, there is no bun in my oven." Her voice was dripping with mockery and sarcasm.

Involuntarily, Ron grinned as he watched Hermione go. Ginny caught this and kicked him before climbing back down the stairs.

Harry leaned backwards, hands flat on the floor. He stared at the chessboard in front of him intently. He could see now that Ron would have had him beat in two moves. As much as Harry hated being beat, he wished more than anything that Ron would have stayed and finished the game. It would have saved quite a few people from some embarrassing situations. He had left about 10 minutes ago, and so far, Harry hadn't heard any shouts or hexes, which meant that hopefully Ron never caught up with Hermione.

With a deep sigh, he glanced around the room. Pig was snoozing in his cage, an odd event for such a wound up owl. The window was shut tightly due to the coolness of the outside. It had been odd coming home after such a long absence. He had been nervous to see everyone again, but to be completely honest nothing had changed. Molly and Arthur were still heartwarmingly kind; Ron had made him laugh as soon as he saw him; and Ginny, well Ginny had still left knots in his stomach.

He, voluntarily, hadn't seen her yet. Now that there was a massive amount of water separating the two, he knew that Hermione was right. He would have to bulk up that Gryffindor courage to speak with her. He only hoped she wouldn't ask about all the letters she had written.

He felt horrible for not responding. But he couldn't. Each time he tried to write back, his mind went blank and he was afraid he'd break down and let her back in. Harry couldn't though. The dangers of his life weren't over. His job was about defeating evil, repeatedly. How could he let her into that mess?

Of course, Ginny was a smart girl. She found her loophole around that excuse…

Harry heard the door creak open behind him. He chuckled to himself as he thought of the sullen face of Ron Weasley behind him. "So, how'd it go? Manage to escape from the leg locker curse? Or did she go for the more subtle approach and hit you with a silencing charm?" He asked coolly. Silence met him in response.

He turned to see what had kept Ron was mumbling for him to shut up or at least from plopping down on his floor with a disgruntled groan only to find a most unfortunate sight. Hermione was standing in the doorway, her arms crossed over her chest. She glared at him soundly. Harry raised an eyebrow, "He's still alive, isn't he?"

Hermione shook her head and swiftly walked around Harry, swatting him in the back of the head before turning to stand in front of him. "How dare you let him come talk to me like that!" She scowled.

Harry laughed now, rubbing the back of his head. "Oh come on, it's Ron. He can't have done much harm. If you're going to blame anyone, blame Fred and George-"

"You're his best friend. You should have stopped him!" She interrupted.

Harry grinned, "Right, because I can control Ron. Are we talking about the same person?"

"He practically told the whole house! I heard him shouting from the kitchen and went to find out what about, only to find him standing next to his _father_ and yelling at his sister about my… _shotgun wedding._" She whispered the last words, as if she thought Molly would be lurking in the shadows of the hallway. "I believe you're the one to thank for putting that definition in his head?"

Harry shook his head, "I only helped a little. Calm down, Hermione. He didn't mean anything by it. He was just looking out for you… in his own, very Weasley way." He gave her a slight smile.

Hermione narrowed her eyes at him again, before her gaze slowly drifted to the chessboard at his feet. "I think he was winning." She said slowly.

"Nothing new there." Harry shrugged. "So, did you come up here just to chew me out?" He watched her as she sat on the edge of Ron's bed. She bit her lip slightly.

"Actually, I have a bit of an important matter to discuss with you…" She started, letting her hands fall to side of the bed beside her. "It's about the wedding."

Harry sat up straighter, wondering what could spark this nervous glimmer in Hermione's eyes. "Okay. Is everything alright?"

"Oh, yes, I mean everything is going fine. But well, I've been thinking, I've got myself a Maid of Honor, and Caden has picked his Best Man, but I'm missing something very key... That is, I still need someone to give me away." She said in a rush, her eyes were boring holes into the floor. "Since that role is traditionally given to the bride's father, well obviously, tradition won't work for me. And I was thinking I need to find someone who I trust completely and who I know will do his very best to get me through the day…"

She looked up and gave Harry a half smile, hiding the glistening tears behind eyes. Her thoughts fell quickly onto the photo in the magazine she just saw. She took a breath, trying to regain her focus.

Harry saw her difficulty and tried, "Hermione, are you trying to ask me to give you away?"

Hermione laughed softly, inwardly thanking Harry for asking. "Why, yes Harry, I am."

He beamed up at her and said, "Of course, I will. It'd be an honor."

She smiled at him, letting herself breath. She felt a large weight being lifted from her shoulders. "Thank you. I was hoping that was what you would say." Suddenly, Hermione shot up from the side of the bed. Her smile faded and a frown replaced it. She stared angrily at the door.

Harry turned again to see Ron in the doorframe, leaning casually to one side, his hands in his pockets. "Hey." He face was growing redder by the minute as he stared on past Harry at Hermione.

Hermione rolled her eyes, returning her arms to her chest. "Yes, Ronald?" She asked sternly.

"Um, what are you two doing?" He mumbled, running a hand through his bright red hair. Obviously surprised that Hermione spoke to him.

"I was asking Harry a question about the wedding-" Hermione began.

"Yes, the non-shotgun wedding." Harry interjected, before hastily standing to avoid another swift smack from Hermione.

"Harry's going to be giving me away." Hermione said simply, her eyes falling back onto Ron's. His hand had stopped in the mess that was his hair.

He gulped and said meekly, "That's great."

Hermione nodded and marched past the two boys. Ron stepped to the side, allowing her to pass. "I thought so too. Things are falling together nicely." She bumped into Ron's arm with her shoulder as passed. He caught a twinkle of a smile out of the corner of her eye and relaxed somewhat.

Ron stepped into the room and shut the door shaking his head. Harry leaned back against the wardrobe, happy to have avoided an scene of confrontation between the two.

"That was a close one." He mumbled.

"Giving her away? To Caden?" Ron asked aloud, and grumbled to Harry. "Traitor."

_Please review! All the reviews help keep me going! __ Thanks for reading!_


	7. More Like Pissed

_Disclaimer: I do not own anything relating to Harry Potter, I am simply borrowing J.K. Rowling's wonderful characters, history and locations!_

_Author's Note: Thank you guys for all your reviews. I hope you like this chapter… I'm going to try my hardest to get the next one up ASAP! _

Harry had spent the better portion of the afternoon explaining how he couldn't have very well said no to Hermione when she asked him to step in. Ron didn't see the look in her eyes, it was painful to watch her knowing full well what horrible moments she was reliving. Had Ron been placed in the same spot, even he would have said yes.

Harry strolled down the steps, hands in his pockets, glancing in each direction, his eyes seeking out a certain redheaded young lady. He had been purposely hiding away in Ron's room, afraid of meeting her gaze. However, after he looked at the clock and realized 4 hours had passed he began to feel very childish. His Gryffindor spirit pulled him along; one part of him secretly wished for a bit more time, while the other was just ready to get on with the conversation.

A loud clang came from the kitchen followed by a faint 'ouch'. Harry peeked past the doorframe into the brightly lit room. He felt like he was six again, afraid that Aunt Petunia would blame him again for one of Dudley's broken toys. Of course, he had nothing to be afraid of, not really…

Ginny stood near the cupboards, her finger in her mouth. Around her lay scattered a few dozen shards of china on the floor. She must have tried to clean it up the muggle way. With a disgruntled sigh, she grabbed her wand from the counter and whispered a restoring spell. The pieces danced through the air, putting the plate back together, as if it were a puzzle. It then gently floated down next to the sink. Ginny smiled in response at a job well done.

Unconsciously, his feet had moved him into the room. Before he could say a word, she spotted him out of the corner of her eye. Her hand flew to her chest as she twirled towards him. "Harry! Merlin, don't do that." She cried, eyeing him suspiciously.

He smiled weakly, unsure what to say. It had been a long time since he had seen Ginny last. Harry took her in. She hadn't changed much, aside from the dark circles growing under her eyes. She was wearing a light blue sweater that made her eyes jump out at him. They were sprinkled with shock, delight and a dash of worry. Blush crept up her cheeks, matching perfectly with her hair, her flawless, soft, scarlet hair. Harry had half a mind to reach out and run his hands through it; luckily, Ginny jarred him out of his corrupting thoughts.

"Um, I was just making myself a sandwich. Would you like one?" She asked hesitantly, gesturing towards the deli meat and bread in front of her. She had only just begun preparing. Her nervousness was bewildering to Harry.

Harry nodded. He tried to walk casually around her to reach the solid resting place that was the tiled counter. However, his own anxiety grew more pronounced the more he moved. He almost tripped over his feet. Ginny shook her head, and brought her gaze back to the food. He caught her peeking sideways glances at him every few seconds.

Neither spoke for what seemed like hours. Harry cleared his throat, but was soon cut off-

"So, how was your trip? You've been gone for so long; I've almost forgotten what you look like." Ginny asked with a new set of confidence Harry could clearly note. She piled the turkey onto the bread tentatively, making each movement last longer than it should. She was biding her time.

Harry ran his hands through his hair. "It was… a lot to take in." She shook her head once more. His eyebrows rose cautiously. "I mean-"

"It's funny," Ginny interrupted. "How so much happened, but not one thing was letter worthy."

"Well, it was hard to write. We were so busy-" Harry started, but was once again overpowered.

She rolled her eyes, and she turned her attention away from the food in front of her and stared at Harry. Her gaze was anything but nervous or anxious. She placed her hands on her hips in a very Molly-Weasley-like manner. "You're telling me you didn't write to a single person while you were away?"

Harry cowered below her intense glare. He had forgotten just how much that stare scared him. He had fought Death Eaters and faced one of the darkest wizards of all time, but nothing compared to the wrath of Ginny Weasley. The worst part was… he knew he deserved it.

He started to open his mouth to speak, but instead Ginny took the small hesitation as an invitation. "You do realize I spend most of my time here, with your two best friends, right? And, if you have forgotten that fact, you may try and lie to me. And that wouldn't be a great idea at this point in time." She said matter-of-factly.

"I wasn't going to lie. I was busy, Ginny. Ask either of them, I wasn't able to write a lot. It was hard, being away." He tried, his voice strained a little. He hadn't told anyone how much leaving had hurt. For once in his life, he had missed home. Now that he had a home to miss.

His honesty was pushed aside as Ginny let her anger get the best of her. "You could have been dead, for all I knew! Being here was hard. You were out doing Merlin knows what, while I was stuck wondering whether or not you would make it home!" Her arms threw to the air. She slammed the other piece of bread on top of the sandwich.

Harry blinked, irritation fused through him. "Hey pot, the kettle's calling." He said through gritted teeth. Ginny narrowed her eyes at him, confused. "I don't remember receiving any word from you about joining the Auror program. After everything I told you, all the danger, the worry you have about me being out there? Don't think I don't know why you did it."

Ginny held his gaze. Her head tilted slight as she mocked him with a spiteful smirk, "And why's that? Enlighten me."

Harry knew he was treading on dangerous waters. Something told him to stop, told him he wouldn't make it out of this alive. But his anger and the look in her eyes fueled him. He could see the spark ignite in her bright blue eyes. She had been waiting for this to happen. For how long, he wasn't sure. "Ginny, if you're doing this for me…" He started, trying to keep the disappointment hidden.

Her hands flew up in the air, stopping him from going any further. "Surprisingly enough, Harry Potter, not everything I do pertains to you." He winced inwardly as she laughed coldly. His stare seared on, watching her reaction. "Is it too much to think that maybe I wanted to help someone? That perhaps I'm tired of being the one left in the dark?"

"Ginny you can't." He said sternly. "You can't put yourself in that kind of danger, think of your family." He added as a last resort, hoping the guilt would help his efforts.

She took a few steps closer to him, they were only inches apart. She had to look upward slightly to meet his eyes. "Don't tell me what I can't do. If you can go off and risk everything, once again, so can I. You lost the privilege to have any say in the fact."

Her words stung. He knew they were true. She spat them out back at him like venom. "Ginny…" He mumbled, unsure what to say next.

She turned quickly, snatching up both of the sandwiches she prepared. "Man, I'm starving." And with that, she stalked out of the room. Harry's stomach growled in wanting.

Ginny stormed into her room, startling Hermione. She plopped herself down on her bed, taking a large bite of her sandwich as she went. She struggled to hold onto the other as she fell. Hermione, who was stacking papers and magazines, eyed her with curiosity. "Hungry?"

"More like pissed." Ginny spat, but Hermione could hear the tears in her voice.

She looked towards the bed again, fiddling with the stack in her hands. The pages crinkled under her cautious touch. Ginny kept her gaze on the floor. Hermione knew she was trying not to cry. It could only mean one thing. Harry finally came out from his hiding place. "What's wrong?"

The younger girl pulled her knees up to her chest, setting both sandwiches on her pillow. "He's ridiculous. Honestly, how dare he act as though he has any right or any say in my life."

"Gin, he cares about you. And, he's a bit protective if you haven't noticed." Hermione said. Her eyes tore around the room, looking for something. "Can you hate him for that?"

"Yes." Ginny pouted. "You have no idea, Hermione. He didn't write to me at all while he was gone. How can he just expect me to tell him about my life, when I hear nothing about his? He's so infuriating."

Hermione laughed. "Tell me about it. Did you know that your brother actually had the courage to talk to me after his outburst?" She smiled slightly.

Ginny sat up straighter. "What'd I miss? I haven't seen him, did you hex him? Maybe make him grow a tail, or force a leg-locker curse on him? Please, I need a pick me up!" She rushed, her anger slowly evaporated away from her face.

Hermione swatted the air, "Nothing like that. He's Ron, Ginny. He doesn't think before he acts. Why should I punish him for being himself?" Hermione seemed to have found was she was looking for, and grabbed her sweater from on top of the nearest dresser.

Ginny's face fell. "Nothing? I would have-"

"I know what you would have done. Believe me, I thought about it. But, I guess… I don't know." She trailed off, biting her lip. Ginny gave her inquisitive look, leaning in closer. Hermione twirled down onto the bed next to Ginny. She stared at the ceiling.

"Yes…" The redhead probed.

"I suppose, I don't blame him. For coming to that conclusion, I mean. I don't like that he shouted out his theories to the world. But really Ginny, who am I kidding, getting married so fast? That's bound to be on everyone's minds, don't you think?" She looked at Ginny questioningly.

Ginny rolled her eyes, and brushed her hair out of her face. "Does it matter? You're not marrying Caden for them. As long as you're ready. As long as you've given it some thought. You're Hermione, you don't go into something not knowing, right?" She gave Hermione an encouraging smile. "Ron's just… jealous."

Hermione's eyes widened as Ginny spoke. Ginny, not catching the change, continued. "He's not used to sharing you. Caden will be your number one now. And that's difficult to adjust too."

"You sure do know a lot about what Ron's feeling." Hermione stated, her voice laced with interest.

Ginny smiled, she suddenly afraid that maybe she had said too much. "Well, we don't fight all the time." She stopped there, not trusting herself to say anything further. This was between Ron and Hermione, as much as it killed her to watch.

Hermione shrugged, pulling on her black sweater again. Ginny's words stuck. She hummed to herself faintly. "Well, I suppose I should get home. I'm going to take some of these home with me. See you tomorrow for dinner?"

Ginny nodded, "Yeah, Mum's been talking about it all week. Charlie's arriving tonight sometime." She paused, and picked at the sandwich on her pillow. "Thanks for the talk Hermione. Sometimes I wonder if we'll ever have a normal life." She half joked.

"It's more fun this way, don't you think?" Hermione added, "I couldn't imagine a life without Ron or Harry."

Ginny shrugged, "Yeah, I suppose they aren't all bad…"

_Please review! __ Thanks for reading!_


	8. A Bit Mental

_Disclaimer: I do not own anything relating to Harry Potter, I am simply borrowing J.K. Rowling's wonderful characters, history and locations!_

Hermione was nervous. She stood in front of her floor length mirror, fidgeting with her hair. It wasn't as bushy as normal, but it still would not sit correctly atop her head. She had done her best to curl her hair, as Ginny had taught her, and was now trying to pile it all on her head. Frustrated, she let it fall to her shoulders. She cursed herself for wanting to go the muggle way, and not buying an enchanted mirror; it would know what to do.

Tonight was important. Tonight was the night her family would meet Caden's. In essence, tonight was the night Caden's would meet Hermione herself. She had briefly met them in America, when they were attending the same garden party for some Ministry members. That, however, was the extent of Hermione's relationship with Caden's parents. Tonight had to go well, although Hermione's current mood was not a good start to the evening.

Her mind seemed to replay her conversation with Ginny the day before. She could not comprehend Ginny's word choices. She had said that Ron was jealous of Caden. Hermione could not wrap her head around that theory. For, Ron Weasley seemed to be doing fine on his own. He had a brilliant job, one that was perfect for him. He had his share of girlfriends… well one at the very least.

Unless, Ginny had thought Ron was truly jealous of Caden's relationship with her. She laughed coldly to herself at that thought. It was an absurd idea. Ron had made it clear that he didn't view her that way. She had realized that when she returned from America to see Ron's arm draped around Rebecca's shoulders. Hermione pulled at her dress a bit tighter. It infuriated her that he would be so protective, after he had not told her about his relationship with Rebecca in the first place. She had been so upset with him when she returned home that they didn't speak for at least a week.

No, Ron was not jealous. He was simply being an overprotective git. It was not as if it was a particular shock to her. In the past, she would sometimes find him charming when he acted this way.

With a sigh, she took one more glance at herself. As her eyes scanned the mirror from her modest maroon dress to her anxious face, she tried to smile. It looked a bit forced, but would have to do.

They stood on the steps of Caden's small house. Hermione stared at the end of the street, awaiting the inevitable. The last time she talked with the Miffs they had been much too impressed by her past and her friends. She had to give them a break though, after all, it's not every day you find out your son knew the Chosen One's best friend. However, Hermione hoped that with the time that has passed, the two would be well adapted to the fact. Otherwise, tonight would be very interesting.

"Do you have everything?" Caden asked, before casting a spell on the door. Hermione glanced over her shoulders back at him and gave him a half-smiled. He looked handsome in his cream-colored sweater and black pants. He always managed a sophisticated look, even if they were only heading to dinner at Harry's. This sweater was her favorite.

"I think so. They'll be here soon, will they?" She questioned letting her eyes fall on the street again. She tried to hide her uneasiness as best she could.

"Yes, Mother said half past six." With a glance to his watch, he added. "And she's never late."

"Sounds like someone else I know." Hermione teased. "I hope Mrs. Weasley helped Harry clean up the place. It has never been much of a pretty sight." She shifted from one leg to another as a cool breeze swept through the air. She shivered.

"Don't worry so much. They're going to be happy just to see you again and spend some time with the two of us." Caden said, putting his arm around Hermione shoulders. She sighed and closed her eyes, trying her best to stop worrying. She was cut off from such relaxation when Caden chuckled and nodded towards the corner of the street. "Ah, here they come."

Hermione's eyes snapped open and zeroed in on a small black car pulling along the side of the road. The windows were tinted, but Hermione could feel a pair of eyes on her. She found herself smiling timidly in apprehension. Her hands flew to her hair, ensuring herself that it was at least a bit acceptable.

Caden rushed to the curb to open the door, a bright grin plastered on his face. If Hermione hadn't been so nervous, she would have found his behavior adorable, instead though, she was merely annoyed.

As the door opened, a pair of black heels stepped out onto the walkway. Caden held out his hand to help his mother out of the car. She accepted it graciously. "Caden, dear, look at you!" She replied, smiling. Hermione had dimly remembered Caden's parents, but she could see now just how much Caden resembled his mother. She had the same bright, toothy smile, as well as the same shiny blond hair. Hers bounced in large curls across her shoulders, perfect curls that did just as they were told.

"Mother, right on time, you are." Caden said with a laugh.

"Lucky we are too," A voice came from the street. Caden's father slammed the car door as he said this. "Traveling the muggle way is always a trial, but your mother insisted."

Mrs. Miff laughed and swatted her husband as he came nearer. "It's always a bit more interesting that way, don't you think?" She asked, without much care for a response. Her eyes lay pointedly on Hermione. "This must be her, yes?" She said with a nod.

Caden nodded enthusiastically. "Oh, yes. Mother, father, this is Hermione."

"Yes, we met at that banquet a summer ago." Mr. Miff recollected. "But now, you're not just Hermione Granger, Ministry intern are you, my dear?" He winked her way with a smile playing against his rounded cheeks.

Hermione blushed. Caden gently touched her elbow, encouraging her. "I suppose not. It is wonderful to see you two again. I've been looking forward to tonight for some time."

"As have we," Mrs. Miff added stiffly. "Now what have the two of you got planned for us?"

"Well, we're actually going to have dinner over at my friend Harry's place. He just returned from traveling and thought it'd be wonderful to meet you." She said, relaxing at the thought of the Weasleys and Harry waiting for her not too far from here.

"The Harry? Harry Potter you mean?" Mr. Miff injected. "We wouldn't happen to be going to Grimmauld Place, would we?"

Hermione started for a moment. "Yes, but how did you know, sir?" She added, trying to be a polite as possible.

Caden clapped a hand on his father's shoulder. "Dad's a huge history buff, especially when it comes to living history. Harry has some great fans in America."

Hermione laughed nervously, more for Harry's sake than her own. "Well I'm sure Harry will be happy to meet the two of you." A breeze swept through the air, causing Hermione to shiver again. "Shall we apparate?"

Mr. Miff jumped at the thought. "Yes please, I've had enough with those muggle contraptions for a few years."

Mrs. Miff tutted as she removed her wand from inside her waistcoat. The rest of them followed suit. Hermione pulled a piece of paper from pocket and unfolded it slowly. "If you would just read this address, you should be able to apparate your way there. It'll take you directly to the foyer. Harry has taken down most of the protection charms for us tonight." She handed the paper to Mrs. Miff, who took it kindly.

Within moments, two loud pops sounded. Hermione glanced at Caden just as he disapparated. She took a deep breath and mumbled, "Here goes nothing."

The noise was deafening when Hermione's feet touched the floor of Number 12 Grimmauld Place. Her eyes widened in worry. Standing up tall, she smoothed out her dress and gazed around the room, catching Harry's eye by the doorway as she did so.

He nodded towards the kitchen. "Caden took them downstairs. Don't worry, they made it." He said as if reading her thoughts.

"I wasn't worried much about that." She huffed. "Why are they yelling? They'll wake- wait.."

"Nice isn't it?" Harry replied coolly. "I didn't think this place would ever be so peaceful."

Hermione took a few steps towards the hall. "Harry, why am I not hearing a catapult of insults? Is she broken?" She asked foolishly.

Harry laughed, pushing his hands in his pockets. "Actually, no. It just so happens, I know two genius wizards that love rebelling against their elders."

"They didn't." Hermione gasped, not that she minded the new silence.

"They did. Nothing too gruesome, mind you. Just think of it as placing a bit of muggle duck tape over the old lady's mouth. It's genius." Harry said with a dramatic sigh.

For the first time since yesterday at the Burrow, Hermione cracked a true smile. "I suppose, they do come in handy once in a while."

Harry chuckled. "Just don't tell them I called them genius. They have such big egos already. No need to add more."

"I won't, promise." She folded her arms across her chest. "The place looks wonderful by the way."

"Mrs. Weasley." He answered plainly.

"I figured as much." Hermione glanced down the hallway that lead to the kitchen, and the mess of voices. "I suppose I should get down there, shouldn't I?"

"Probably a good idea, it'll be fine." Harry said, running a hand through his messy black hair. "It's only the Weasleys. What could possibly go wrong?" Hermione raised her eyebrows at him knowingly.

"What, indeed." She muttered, pulling at Harry's arm. "Come on, if I have to go, so do you."

The two walked in side by side to the brightly lit kitchen. A thick, mouth-watering aroma spread through the air. A smile grew on her lips, as she closed her eyes, taking it in.

"Incoming." Harry grumbled, poking her in the side with his elbow. She stumbled, opening her eyes to an oncoming Mr. Miff.

"Hermione! Your friends are lovely. And who might this strapping young man be?" Mr. Miff asked eyeing Harry with great interest, similar to the way Arthur would be gazing at muggle hair dryer.

Before Hermione could answer, Mrs. Miff, grabbed onto her husband's arm and exclaimed with much more enthusiasm than Hermione had seen those few minutes by the car. "Oh dear, we've missed one." She said, smiling brightly at Harry. Hermione felt a pang of jealousy. She hadn't been able to get a smile out of Mrs. Miff yet today.

"Mr. and Mrs. Miff, this is my friend Harry. He's going to be to giving me away at the wedding." She announced, placing her hand on Harry's back, hoping this wouldn't be too embarrassing. She gave him a weak 'forgive me' smile. His eyebrow rose, confused.

"Harry Potter!" Mr. Miff boomed, as if he had been waiting for an acceptable time. "How are you my boy?"

Harry blinked. "Hello sir-" He began.

"Oh, no call me Malcolm."

"And me Carol. You're practically part of the family now!" Mrs. Miff rejoiced. Hermione refrained from rolling her eyes, although it took much effort. Poor Harry.

"Yes, yes, part of the family. Now tell me, was this truly the head quarters of the infamous Order of the Phoenix?" Malcolm asked curiously.

Hermione shook her head, holding in a laugh as Harry's face when from confused to almost pained. He had seemed to understand her comforting pat a few moments earlier. Hermione briefly tuned out the conversation and questions coming from her soon to be in laws and glanced around the room.

She hadn't seen this many Weasleys together since the summer after Hogwarts. Fred and George were leaning against the wall, a drink in both of their hands, joking with Charlie. It seemed the joke was on their sister, who blushed a bright shade of red as Charlie pulled her in to a hug. Arthur was conversing with Caden, talking actively with his hands. Molly was near the stove, as usual, as she kept gazing happily at her sons, while her daughter-in-law helped set the table. Hermione suddenly felt at peace.

A familiar voice knocked her out of her ravine, "Mr. and Mrs. Miff, great to meet you two. I must have missed the introduced when you came in, I'm Ron Weasley." Ron threw his hand out, stepping between the couple and Harry. "How was your trip here?"

"Oh, hello," Mr. Miff said, glancing anxiously between the two. "Ron Weasley, now, where have I heard that name before?"

"Well dear, you did just meet his wonderful family, did you not?" Mrs. Miff answered, in what must have been her polite voice.

"They are quite the household." Ron agreed, leisurely removing his hand from Mr. Miff's. "I think Mum's ready for us, if you would like to find a seat at the table." Hermione smiled inwardly at Ron's courteous tone.

"Oh yes, it smells delicious!" Malcolm chuckled. "I'll save you a seat by me, Harry?"

Harry pursed his lips and nodded.

"What a good sport you are, mate." Ron praised once the two were out of earshot.

"I tried to warn you, Harry. I'm sorry. I had no idea." Hermione apologized.

"No problem. They're going to be your in laws, as long as you can make it through tonight, any of us can." Harry joked, his green eyes gleaming. "Thanks for the save, by the way, mate. It was getting somewhat… creepy. They knew so much."

Soon all thirteen of them were seated a very long table. The table was piled high with all sorts of deliciously smelling foods. There was shepherd's pie, green beans, carrots, Bouillabaisse (a recipe from Fleur Delacour), rolls, carved ham and a plate of cheese and sausage "for the Americans". Molly never ceased to amaze Hermione with her spread of food. How she was able to finish all of this and clean the house was beyond her.

Caden's parents were true to their word, they ushered Harry next to them at one end of the table. He looked at Hermione with a disappointed stare. She shrugged and bit her lip, unwilling and unable to do much to help him. She found her seat next to Caden and Ginny. Ron sat across from her, rubbing his hands together, probably trying to decide what to try first. He chose the shepherd's pie.

"How did you traveling go?" Mrs. Weasley asked the Miffs. She placed the last bowl plate on the tables (cauldron cakes, Hermione could almost see Ron drooling after them), before taking a seat herself.

"Hermione tells us you were traveling the muggle way? On those large machines, what are they called again? Aerofanes?" Mr. Weasley questioned, with keen interest.

"Airplanes." She corrected with a smile.

Arthur nodded, giving Hermione a thankful grin in return. "Ah, yes, ghastly things." Mr. Miff responded with distaste. He spooned some carrots onto his plate. "How anyone can settle for such things, I'll never know. They were so… muggle." Arthur's face fell immediately.

"But they are able to fly without magic, how extraordinary that must be!" Arthur exclaimed, catching Hermione's eye.

Malcolm shook his head as he passed a dish to his wife. "Magic is much easier." He said simply.

Arthur's lips pursed together, as if having no idea what to say next. Hermione knew he was excited about meeting an American and learning all about American muggles. She was surprised Caden hadn't piped in yet, he always seemed so interested in Hermione's muggle life.

"There are many things that muggles have learned to do without magic." Charlie said coming to his father's defense. "They have these boxes called…. Televisions?" He muttered quietly, receiving a subtle head nod from Hermione. "Yes, these televisions can show what's going on in a completely different part of the world. It's rather amazing."

Taking bite of his ham, Mr. Miff disagreed. "But they haven't got the skill to create moving pictures? A bit mental if you ask me." He took swig of his water, not making contact with any one of the stunned Weasleys' faces.

Silence filled the room. Feeling the tension, Ron looked up from his plate for the first time. "Hermione spent half her life without magic," He mumbled, with a mouthful of bread. "And I think she's doing pretty well. Granted she can be a bit mental sometimes."

Harry snorted into his drink, earning him a glare from Ginny across the table. Although, that was the only look he'd been receiving from her tonight. He laughed nervously, "Yes, brilliant but mental, isn't that right Hermione?"

Hermione, who was smiling moments ago, frowned and narrowed her eyes in his directions. "If I'm not mistaken, my mental capabilities helped get you two through Hogwarts. Or perhaps I should have left you down that trapdoor." She scolded.

The room relaxed with the change of pace. "Caden's told us quite a bit about this Hogwarts of yours. It sounds like a top-notch school." Mrs. Miff said without looking up from her meal. Hermione wasn't sure who she was talking to exactly.

"Oh it was." Fred replied when no one responded.

"Yes, full of prospective ministry leaders, aurors, journalists…" George added.

"And don't forget dark wizards." Fred replied quickly, pointing a finger in George's direction.

"Right you are, right you are."

"Luckily we had Harry Potter on our side. True Gryffindor, he is." Fred smirked, his eyes falling on the chosen one, who was shaking his head.

"Don't be so modest, dear Harry! I'm sure the Miffs would love to hear of you adventures with good ol' Voldie." George replied, clapping his hand on Angelina's shoulder. "Don't you agree, Angelina?"

"Indeed." She said dully, shooting a pitiful look towards Harry.

"I really don't think-" Hermione started, but it was too late. Both the Miffs turned to look at Harry.

"Oh, of course we would!" Mr. Miff called out. The look on his face was one a 5 year old would get if they suddenly realized there was a pony in their backyard. "Gryffindor, is it? What's that mean?"

Harry's mouth opened and closed slightly, his eyes searching out for help. Ginny merely giggled into her napkin. "Well, normally Gryffindor is a place for particularly loyal and brave students. But many people fall in that category-"

"But not every student would partake in the Tri-Wizard Tournament, would they? Or go on secret quests with their headmaster." Mrs. Miff said almost dreamily, reminding Hermione of Luna Lovegood for a brief second.

Harry put his hands up in front him. "I wouldn't have gotten through any of that without Ron and Hermione though. So I can't take the full credit. Hermione was the top student throughout our time in Hogwarts." He added, trying to push the limelight off himself.

"How true that is." Fred exclaimed.

"What would England have done without our Hermione Granger?" George asked, raising a mocking glass, earning him a glare from across the table.

"I bet she wishes she still had Prefect power right about now, don't you think sweetie?" Fred laughed as he nudged Angelina in the side.

Caden cleared his throat, all glanced his way. "Well we'll soon find out, won't be Hermione?" Her eyebrows rose in question. Before she could ask, he continued. "We'll see how England does without their Hermione. Maybe America will have just as much luck." He grinned as his eyes found Hermione's.

Her mouth fell open, along with most of the table. Mrs. Miff suddenly burst out into applause. "You're coming home?!" She cried half question-half statement.

"At some point, after the wedd-" Caden answered but was cut off by a chair screeching.

Hermione watched as Ron disappeared behind the archway. Tension weighed heavily in the room. No one dared to speak, unsure exactly what to say. Hermione felt more than a dozen pairs of eyes on her. She flattened her napkin down on the table, unwilling to meet anyone's gaze. She was angry, and hurt that Caden would unleash such a fragile subject. It was not the time or the place.

Slowly she lifted her eyes to meet his. He was grinning at the remaining Weasleys and his parents. His teeth gleamed and threatened to sparkle. Hermione's fury surged. How dare he? Acting as though this outburst was the best news in the world, acting as if the Weasleys weren't pained at the sudden news.

"Excuse me," She mumbled quietly, edging her way out of her chair. The stares could be dealt with at another time. Right now, Hermione needed to get out of there. She pushed her way past the Fred and George's chairs, finally breathing a sigh of relief when she reached the foyer. Before she realized was she was doing, she pressed her hands against the door and took a few steps outside.

The night had turned cold. She crossed her arms, cursing herself for not wearing a heavier sweater. Music from the neighboring houses could be heard, faintly, through the few half open windows. Hermione found herself swaying slightly as the melody drifted her way.

She was upset. She had told him she would think about it. There were no plans, no timeline of any sort. Of course, she was going to America for work. Did that mean she wanted to pick up her entire life and just leave? No.

A loud thwack lifted her out of her conscience. It had come from the bottom steps, Hermione hadn't even looked down towards the street when she stepped out. "Hello?" She called, her Gryffindor spirit fueling her on as she took a few steps towards the sound.

"I'd prefer if you went back inside." He grunted. "It's freezing out here, plus your new family's waiting for you." Hermione could hear the sarcasm dripping from Ron's voice. He was pouting, that much was obvious.

"What are you doing out here?" She asked more accusingly than she intended.

Ron huffed, "I could ask you the same question." She could barely see him in the darkness. He was seated on the bottom step, his long legs stretching out onto the sidewalk. His hands fall on his knees as he leaned over, glaring at the wintry ground below him.

"I'm angry. When I get angry, I walk away and breathe. Something I'm surprised you seem to have learned." She replied coolly. "Are you keen on brooding alone, or would you like some company?"

He looked up, his blue eyes shining. His lips turned up slightly as he nodded. Hermione gathered up her dress and took a seat. "I didn't want you to find out that way." Hermione muttered after a few moments of silence.

"Yeah? So it's true then?" Ron probed, his voice breaking slightly. "You're leaving England…"

Hermione shook her head, "No! No… it is only an idea. A compromise one could say." She tried, "I wouldn't expect Caden to live here forever, and he had a life there too."

Ron laughed. "But you're supposed to leave us? I didn't know why were so unimportant to you." He added for a good measure. "I saw the look on Harry and Ginny's faces. Even they had no idea you were thinking of leaving, for good."

He glared at her, awaiting an answer. Hermione narrowed her eyes back at him. "Did you happen to see my face as well, since you're such a fine observer? I was just as surprised as anyone else." Ron rolled his eyes, leading Hermione to continue. "I was! I never once said I was leaving after the wedding, or anytime in the near future. Please, Ron, I don't want to argue."

"That's what you say now." Ron mumbled.

"What?"

"You're going to leave. You've got your own life now. Poor Ron will be left alone again. Harry's never home and now you're getting married." Ron sulked. "Maybe this is just the way it's supposed to happen."

"Ron-" Hermione started, this was the first time they had had a conversation about her marriage since, well, since the proposal.

He was quiet for several moments. "I'm used to Harry not being here. It is a part of being Harry; he is always gone. But, I guess I never expected for you to leave us behind. I'm not sure what I will do if you leave. It could never be the same without you here, Hermione." Ron whispered. If he hadn't of said her name, Hermione would have wondered if he remembered she was sitting here. His eyes were gazing out at the darkness that surrounded them.

"I'm not leaving." She said resolutely. "I'm not ready to leave, nor do I want to." Her voice was softer than normal. She desperately wanted to see Ron's eyes. Why, she wasn't sure.

As if reading her thoughts, Ron turned to face her. His lips curled into a half smile. "Good." Hermione saw a spark of joy in his eyes, but it was quickly dashed by something else. Something she couldn't understand. She smiled at him, hoping to light them up again. Although his eyes stayed dark, he smirked at her.

She shivered. For the past five or so years, Hermione had cursed herself for letting his sideways smile do that to her. She always felt horribly guilty for it. "Here," Ron murmured, knocking her out of her thoughts. He was holding out his tan suit coat. He must have thought she shivered from the cold… It was better that way. She accepted it, thanking the stars that it was too dark to notice her pink tinted cheeks.

Hermione couldn't deny the heat that was surging through her. It was so strong that she had to tear her eyes away from his. She silently wished she would stop acting like such a teenager. It was ridiculous.

They sat together, in the cold. Ron began to hum to the music next door. She knew he had no idea what song it was, but that didn't seem to matter to him. Snow had begun to fall lazily around them. Hermione pulled Ron's coat tighter against her. "Hermione…" Ron murmured. His voice was soft, reminding Hermione of that day in the Hospital wing when her name escaped from his sleeping lips.

Her insides turned uneasily. She didn't like going back there, back to when she thought they had a chance, back to when she believed he thought of her differently. It was too hard. "Well, I suppose I should get back inside." Hermione rushed, pushing herself up from the steps.

"Yeah, Caden is probably worried…" Ron trailed off, gloomily watching Hermione stand. "I'll be there in a few minutes." She nodded and pushed through the door.

"Strike one." Ron muttered to himself, shaking the snow out of his red hair.

"It's late. You should probably head up." Caden said stiffly. He hadn't spoken to her much since they left Harry's. She couldn't put her finger on why. He had smiled as they waved goodbye to his parents, but then his faced turned cold. Hermione could hear him gritting his teeth as they strolled down the deserted streets; she was sure it wasn't from the cold.

"Would you like to come in for tea?" She tried as they reached her door, one part of her hoping he'd decline.

Caden shifted, his feet flattening the newly fallen snow beneath him. He glanced at his watch. "Well, I have to work in the morning…"

"Oh, well another time then." Hermione rushed a bit too quickly.

Caden's eyes met hers. She blushed under his intense stare. Suddenly she was worried he could see those feelings she had felt hours before; the ones that she was trying to wrap her head around since she left Ron on the doorsteps. "But I wouldn't mind a cup." He finished, still looking at her intently, watching for a reaction.

"Oh!" Hermione started. "Okay, well come on in then. I'm not sure what I have…" She trailed off, opening the door.

Her house was small, but cozy. She had spent much of her time doing all she could to make it a home. There was a small kitchen, perfect for her quick meals, a bathroom near her bedroom, and a lounge of sorts for entertaining, something she's rarely done. To most, it would look quite plain, but to Hermione, it was home. It had everything she needed, including a built in bookshelf in her bedroom. With a sigh, she let her purse and coat fall on the arm of her sofa.

"That's fine." Caden said reaching for the light switch near the door as Hermione wandered through the darkened room. She meandered through the lounge from memory, tapping her fingers on the coffee table as she passed. "Interesting dinner, don't you think?" He asked slowly.

His words hung in the air. Hermione smiled to herself as she heard the hesitation in his voice. Perhaps he understood her anxieties over the information he so freely shared tonight. "Yes, it was lovely to meet your parents again. I think they were charmed by the Weasleys." She added. "As many are."

Caden stiffed in the other room. His jaw clenched. "Yes, they're a charming group." By this point, Caden had made his way into the kitchen, where Hermione stood, next to the stove. She was on her tiptoes reaching into the cabinets. Caden eyed her curiously, "Quite chivalrous, giving up their time, their coats…"

Her hands slipped from the tea box in the cupboard instantly as her feet fell flat. She turned fiercely towards Caden. "Is that why you've been so quiet?" She whispered. "It was cold outside, I didn't have my sweater." Hermione added fervently

Caden leaned against the doorframe, his head shaking slightly. "You didn't have to follow him. Everyone noticed, Hermione. You practically ran after him." His arms were crossed across his chest. Hermione didn't like his stare, it was full of accusation, none of which she felt she deserved.

Her hands flew up in the air as she turned back to the cupboard, trying to shrug off her irritation. "He was upset. I'm his friend, that's what friends do." She stated.

"I didn't see Harry rising to the occasion."

Hermione scoffed. "Of course not. I'm the one that comforts them, Caden. Its the way it's always been. I was the reason that he was so angry anyway. I could thank you for that actually." She replied frostily, plucking out two tea bags before turning to narrow her eyes at him.

"So he was upset that you're leaving." Caden grinned triumphantly, ignoring her claim.

Hermione murmured, "I'm not going anywhere, Caden. We never agreed on a specific time. And I'm not ready. I don't know if I'll ever be." In waiting for his response, her hands fell onto the corners of the stove, as she stared at the shiny blue pot in front of her.

Out of the corner of her eye, she could see him straighten up, his arms uncrossed. "What?" He asked incredulously.

"I told you, I'm not ready to go-" She turned to .lean her back against the counter. Caden's eyes were wide with disbelief. She smiled at him lightly trying to disband the disappoint he was feeling.

"Hermione, I agreed to get married here; to be with your friends, near your home. But this place isn't my home."

"It could be!" Hermione sounded, pushing herself towards him.

Caden shook his head, his hands dug in his pockets. "We talked about this. There are plenty of jobs and people in America."

"Of course there are, but there is no Ron or Harry." Hermione exasperated. "They're my best friends, my family. I can't just… leave."

"So, you want to stay for them." Caden questioned, although he already knew this was the case. "You'll still see them. You will. I'll make sure of it. But Hermione, you're going to be my wife soon. We need to start our life together."

Caden smiled at her, hoping to make sure understand what he was saying. She stared at him, his windswept blond hair and flawless features. "We could start it here." She said quietly, taking a few steps closer to him.

Caden closed his eyes, unsure how to explain. "We could. But I'll be your family then." Hearing a heavy sigh from him, Hermione suddenly realized that maybe Ron wasn't the only jealous one, if he was in fact jealous. Hermione hadn't bothered to think of what her friendships with Ron and Harry were doing to her fiancé.

Hermione's arms flew up around Caden's neck. "You are my family. If you haven't noticed, I happen to like having large families." Caden opened his eyes and smiled half-heartedly. "It is true. But I'm sorry; you can't expect me to give up Ron and Harry."

Caden shrugged, and put his arms around Hermione's waist. "I know. It's so much easier that way though." He bent down and placed a kiss on Hermione's nose. She wrinkled it in response.

The whistled sounded from the kettle. "Tea's done!" Hermione pushed her way out of Caden's arms and removed the tea kettle from the flame as quickly as she could. "Do you still want a cup?" She asked, grabbing two cups off the other wooden rack behind the stove.

Caden shook his head. "I better get going… Unless you'd like me to spend the night?" He added, flashing a hopeful smirk.

Hermione pursed her lips. "I believe we're talked about that also."

"It was worth a try." He explained, taking a few steps to give her a kiss on the cheek before heading for the door.

_Thanks for reading! Please review._


	9. A New Set of Guinea Pigs

_Disclaimer: I do not own anything relating to Harry Potter, I am simply borrowing J.K. Rowling's wonderful characters, history and locations!_

_A/N: Sorry this chapter took so long! I've been finishing up end of the semester projects and finals. But here it is! I hope you like it!_

It had been a month since the dinner with the Miffs. Ginny had spent every minute of her free time helping Hermione plan her wedding since then. Although it was somewhat aggravating, planning a wedding she knew should not very well happen; it was nice to have something to keep her mind off Harry. She had not spoken to him since that day in her parents' kitchen. He infuriated her to no end, and unfortunately, her family had to deal with her rants about his insensitivity and stupidity. At least Hermione understood where she was coming from.

Ginny had been about to leave for Hermione's house when she received an odd owl. Now, she was stepping cautiously into her brothers' shop. Their owl had been quite vague, evoking curious hesitation. It had been a few months since her last visit, but the shop was warm and inviting. She began to pull at her emerald green scarf as she eyed the expansive room. They had inflated the shop in the past year to help with the booming business they had been receiving. Ginny doubted that Filch was very happy.

Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes was the one shop that parents did not want to enter, for obvious reasons. There were various children bouncing around the place between different stations of goodies. Two girls were fighting over the last Pirate Daydream Charm, each listing off ridiculous reasons why they should be the one to try it first. A young boy was walking around the shop without a head, due to the popular Headless Hats. And then there was a group of boys trying to coax a young girl into trying a Canary Cream. To most, the place seemed chaotic, but to Fred and George, Ginny was sure, it was merely a productive day.

Ginny unbuttoned her jacket as she walked straight towards the group of boys and the young girl. The girl was eying the candy warily, a look Ginny was immediately proud of. When she was close enough, Ginny bent down to the girl's level and whispered, "A word of advice, don't try anything unless you see them try it first."

The girl smiled and said matter-of-factly. "I know. I have three older brothers."

Ginny nodded and grinned in return. Then she turned to the boys, "I wouldn't let the management see you using these Canary Creams in the store. They're not responsible for any messes your newly transformed canary makes." She said, pointedly, glancing at the sign overhead.

"Ginny, you aren't patronizing the customers, are you dear sister?" George called from above, on the staircase that lead up to the newly remodeled defense section of the store.

"Of course not, I was merely explaining the rules." She said, stifling glances between her brother and the group of boys.

"Rules! What rules?" Fred jumped in from behind the cash register. "There are no rules here, unless Mum's stopping by…"

Ginny shook her head taking a few careless steps towards the registers, "You two are impossible. You owled?" She added, picking through the various quills set up along the counter.

The twins eyes met, their eyebrows rose in unison. "Ah, yes. We were wondering if you'd look at a new product for us." Fred stated casually.

Ginny took a step back. "I thought we had an agreement, I don't tell Mum about your Hogwarts mail service, and you will not make me your guinea pig."

"By of course not! We haven't even perfected this new one. We were just wondering if you would tell us what you thought…" George said as he skipped down the last few steps to come to stand in front of Ginny.

"Of this purely hypothetical product," Fred added, handing change back to a short pudgy boy who had just bought a Pygmy Puff.

"Somehow I don't believe you."

Both brothers looked offended. "But, Gin, how could you think such things of your own flesh and blood?" George cried his arms wide open.

Ginny laughed, "Oh I don't know, past experience?" Suddenly a faint crash came from somewhere behind Fred. Ginny jumped, startled. "What was that?" She questioned, standing on her tiptoes, to peer behind him.

"What was what? George?" Fred asked, moving to block Ginny's view.

"No idea, Fred." George answered, he pulled on Ginny's elbow slightly, steering her away from the desk. "So, about that new charm… You see we think it will revolutionize the world as we know it."

"Oh, really?" Ginny inquired, stealing another glance at Fred, who smiled at her obnoxiously. "Revolutionize the world, how?"

"I thought you'd never ask!" George said delighted. "We have created a charm to stop all fights known to man." Ginny opened her mouth to speech, but George shushed her. "It was simple really. You put someone in a room with whomever they are fighting with and say the charm… and viola! They're best buds again."

"But how?"

George tutted and threw his arm around Ginny's shoulders. "Be patient. I was getting there, dear sister. You see, we would make it so the charm would not disband until the two have made their peace! It's brilliant."

"Absolutely brilliant," Fred mimicked from behind near a mountain of pretty glass bottles and jars full of different types of liquids. He stood pretending to rearrange the bottles, but Ginny knew he simply wanted to be a part of the conversation.

"You two don't honestly think that would work. That would take some seriously powerful magic, if it got into the wrong hands…" She trailed off.

George grinned. "You know we only use our powers for good." Ginny gave him an unconvinced look before George cried, "Oh no! Fred what have you done."

All eyes in the shop turned to where Fred was standing near a hearty batch of love potion. Five bright, purple bottles lay at the floor in front of Fred's feet. "Oops," He murmured. "What have I done is right!" The children around the store snickered behind their gloved hands.

George moved towards the mess, "Ginny would you be a doll and grab a few bottles of _Love Me Do_ from the storage room. Pretty please…" His casual tone opted Ginny to trust him. Normally the two were horrible at lying, especially when the outcome was as exciting as pranking a sibling.

Ginny pulled open the door to the storage room forcefully, it was heavy. "What shelf?" She called back as she took a few steps in. It was dark and smelled rotten, as if some milk had spoiled months ago. She pulled out her wand ready to whisper _lumos_, when she heard Fred response.

"Um, the fourth?" Fred answered with false confidence. Ginny looked back to glare at him, he shrugged.

"Where'd George go-" She began, only to be cut off by her brother's abrupt appearance in front of the door. He blocked Fred's smiling face. "I could have found it you know."

"You still can." He said simply, plucking Ginny's wand from her hands. "Thank you. Let me know when it's all better." And with that, he shut the door in Ginny's still shocked face.

Harry felt the cold, hard floor beneath him. His hands were sprawled out behind him, holding him up. They had caught his fall a few moments ago. He was not sure what was going on. One minute he was standing at the cash register with Fred, discussing a possible new branch of Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, and the next he was here, wherever here was.

His thoughts traveled back to that moment the door chimed in the front of the store. Harry had glanced up expecting to see another group of rowdy kids or teenagers. The place had simply been crawling with various children since he had first arrived. However, before he could clearly see the visitor who had entered, Fred groaned and mumbled something inaudible. Harry had turned to ask what he said when a large puff of black smoke engulfed his senses.

He knew what had happened; someone had used Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder on him, but he could not be sure who. He was immediately on guard, pulling out his wand readying himself. Harry knew the effects of the Powder, having used it several times throughout the past few years, and knew his wand wouldn't be much help to him until the darkness cleared. He cursed himself for being caught in such a trap. He called out for Fred. Within a few seconds from his shout, he felt someone push into his shoulder, followed by a "Shush" in his direction. His bottom hit the floor and a door slammed shut.

Now Harry still sat in the dark. The only light that could be seen was from under the door in front of him. The frame was slightly illuminated by the glowing lights in the shop. He eyed the shelves around him. They were filled with odds and ends, bottles, boxes, and candy cartons. He stood slowly, assuring himself that he must have been accidently pushed into the storage room. Some child must have exactly detonated the darkness powder and in haste, Fred had knocked him into the room.

Harry rapped his hand against the door smoothly, wishing not to frighten or disturb any of the people paying at the cash register. He could hear muffled noises from the other side of the door, but no one responded. Harry's eyebrow rose, hadn't Fred wondered where he went? And why had the door closed on him? The voices were growing louder, closer.

There was no way they would hear him calling with the distractions outside, so Harry decided to look for another way out. Fred and George did love their secret passageways, there had to be one somewhere around here. He took a few steps forward, grabbing the shelf next to him for direction. His hand dragged along the edge for a distance until he felt it collide with a smooth object. It didn't take long for a crash to hit his ears. "Bugger," He muttered, glancing back at the door in hopes he was heard.

When there was no response, Harry pulled his wand from his pocket. A few words later and his wand lit the room ahead of him. There were many aisles of shelves and old inventions. One of them had to lead to an exit. He continued to walk forward, hoping that he'd find something that could help. The room smelled horrible.

Just as he reached a third dead end, Harry heard the door creak open. "Finally," He whispered to himself. He had to be getting to the office; a month had passed without much of a job. The ministry said he deserved some leave; however, he wasn't much in the mood for it. There was too much to think about. Ron was overloading himself in work. Hermione was busy with wedding details and had started organizing her research for a new bill she hoped would give werewolves more rights. And to top it all over, he and Ginny hadn't spoken since the day he returned. He had excessively much time on his hands, something he wasn't used to.

"What shelf?" A voice called out from the door. Harry's head snapped up, the familiarity of the voice stifled him. He shook his head, she couldn't be here. Before he could add hearing voices back on his list of growing problems he heard the door slam shut again.

"Oh bloody hell. Mum will hear about this, you can bet that." The voice shouted again. This time, Harry knew it was there. He could her exasperating cry echo throughout the room.

"Ginny?" He said quietly, turning to face her along the long aisle, five rows away. She stopped her temper tantrum. Harry could see her fists clench, and for a moment, he was nervous. He watched her right hand, waiting for it to fall down to grab her wand. It never happened.

"Please let this be a horrible, horrible nightmare." She wished coldly. Slowly she turned to face him, her eyes closed. When she opened them again, her shoulders drooped. Her cheeks were red from anger. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing." Harry mumbled, shifting his weight from his left to his right.

"Well you could ask each other the same question over and over again, or we could tell you." A voice boomed from overhead. The two turned their attention overhead, where the sound was coming from. Harry intensified his light, causing Ginny to squint in the process.

"You could warn me before you do that," She grumbled, using her hand as a shade for her eyes. "That would be the gentleman thing to do, but then again, I suppose it's you I'm talkin-"

"Ginny, Ginny!" Another voice yelled overhead, this time Ginny could tell who it was. She could almost see the sly smile lighting up Fred's face. "What a temper you have. Don't worry Harry, you're safe. She doesn't have a wand." Harry chuckled lightly, earning him a stern look from the redhead.

"Now… back to business."

"Right you are George, business. We have grown tired of your antics. The both of you have been floating around the issues for much too long."

"Yes, much, much too long." George tsked.

"So, we've decide to make you a proposition."

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Wait until Mum hears you two locked me in a closet. We'll see who gets the proposition then."

"Darling sister, play nice, please. You'll thank us later." Fred replied coolly, her threat hadn't breached his confidence. She crossed her arms in silent defiance.

"What's the proposition?" Harry spoke up, eying Ginny anxiously.

"Well thank you for asking Mr. Potter. You see, we'd like to try out a new idea. Ginny knows all about it." George laughed. "We've been working a spell, a spell that will revolutionize the world as we know it. And you two have involuntarily volunteered to try it out first!"

"Aren't you two sweet." Fred added politely.

"You new buddy charm? You didn't…" Ginny started.

"Did, and done. So have fun!" Fred said cheerfully.

"Oh my golly, you just rhymed Fred. You're a poet and you didn't even know it!" George exclaimed.

"I did, didn't I? Well, enjoy your company, you lovely love birds."

"Over and out." George made a scratchy sound, before silence ensued throughout the room. Harry was afraid to ask, but had no idea what just happened. Ginny's disgruntled face told him she understood.

"So… how are you?" Harry asked awkwardly. Ginny huffed and turned away from him, glaring at the locked doorway. "I suppose that's a good idea. If we stare at it long enough, it might break under pressure."

"You're not funny." She snapped. "I can't believe I'm stuck in here. I can't believe I fell for this. I lived with them for years! How could I not see this coming?" She exasperated, throwing her hands up in the air.

"What do you mean stuck? What were they talking about?" Harry asked slowly, he stepped closer to her.

"We're their guinea pigs. They testing a charm that makes people resolve their differences. We're stuck here until we can smile and say all is forgiven." She turned and flashed him a fake smile.

Harry shrugged, leaning beside a shelf full of old telescope looking things. "Well, that shouldn't be too difficult, should it?"

Ginny scuffed, "Sure, any time you're willing to apologize, I'm listening. What are those?" She questioned, motioning towards the toy-like things beside Harry.

He pushed aside her apologizing remark and tried to act civil. "They look like an old toy Dudley used to break all the time. I think it was called a kaleidoscope." Ginny tentatively reached out to grab one. She twirled it around in her hands, unsure of what to do next. "If you look through it, and twist it around, it'll show colors and patterns. It's actually a pretty cool creation." He added. She shifted her weight onto one side, causing her to lean closer to Harry.

Gingerly, the redhead brought the toy up to her eye. She peered through it. It glimmered, inviting her in further. She turned it around, watching the lights change colors. The colors seemed never-ending. "Wow." She said breathlessly, pulling it away from her face. "Those muggles are-"

Harry was stifled a laugh as he fell back against one of the large shelves behind him. Ginny had taken the toy from her eye and was now staring at him with an apprehensive glare. She looked menacing with her magical black eye, one in which she was oblivious of. Harry shoved his hands in his pockets, trying to compose himself.

She brought the toy back up to her eye level, scaling it for any sign of trickery. "What?" She snapped, unable to understand his sudden elation. His eyes were smiling at her, she could tell her wanted to tell her but was on edge about it. She gulped, afraid of what he was seeing. "You best tell me Harry Potter, I don't need a wand to hurt you."

Harry grinned, "Gin…" He started. She narrowed her eyes at him again, clearly not in the mood for nicknames. "You have a… It seems Fred and George have been putting their own twists on muggle tricks… " He said unable to keep a straight face. His laughter boiled over. "Here." He finished, tossing a small mirror her way from the shelf behind him.

She caught it easily, those years practicing Quidditch clearly paying off. With a disgruntled sigh, she flipped the mirror over and gasped in horror. "Bloody tossers, how dare they!" She hesitantly touched her eye.

"It's not too bad really, quite fetching on you." Harry tried seeing Ginny's cheeks redden as the seconds passed.

"Come off it." She groaned. "This is your fault! You told me how to use this bloody thing."

"My fault? How is this my fault? You're the curious one." Harry scolded, taking the kaleidoscope from Ginny's hands. "I was just trying to help you out."

"A lot of help you were. Look at me. I should have known. This must have been a first draft of those Punching Telescopes Hermione fell victim too. What if it never goes away?" Ginny whined nervously.

"I don't think there's a chance of that. It looks like paint…" He took a step closer and lifted his hand to brush at the black underneath her eyes. He was only inches away when he realized what he was doing. In those few short seconds, Ginny had stopped breathing and was looking at him incredulously, almost waiting. "I mean, don't you think?" He back away and merely pointed at the spot.

Ginny shook off his look and turned from him. She slid down to the floor, leaning her head back and sighed. "I suppose I'll see if we ever get out of here. I'm supposed to be at Hermione's right now. I don't have time to be stuck under some charm."

Harry crossed his arms, and watched her close her eyes. Even in the dark, with a circle under her eye, she was still the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. He had missed her so much being away. It killed him that he couldn't admit that. "I should be at the office. I need another assignment." He said, trying to be honest.

Ginny laughed coldly. "That's always what it is with you, isn't it? Work this and work that. You always use it as an excuse."

"I do not."

She stared at him through half-opened eyelids. "Yes, you do. You act as though it is a huge feat to leave, even though it is what you want. You want to get as far from here as you can."

Harry's eyes widened. "Are you serious?"

"Why else would you never write? Why else Harry Potter would you never stay in England for more than a month?" Ginny straightened her back, and leaned towards him in her attack. He glared silently. But she knew better than to think she had won.

"You have no idea." He brooded, shaking his head.

"Then tell me! Unless that is too much for you. Can you bear to let me in your life for once? Or am I always going to be left out here waiting and worrying?" This came out more distressed than angry. Ginny was tired of being angry with him. She was tired of having to pretend that his lack of interest didn't cut at her to the deepest core.

"If I tell you anything, it could hurt you." Harry whispered. The silence surrounded them. Both of them sighed in exhaustion.

"I've already been hurt. I know what is out there. I've been around to see all the horrors your job entails. In case you forgot, I was at Hogwarts when Death Eaters overran it… And I'm still alive and kicking. I don't need you to worry about me getting hurt. I'm far past that." Ginny blurted. She glanced up at Harry. His green eyes pierced through the darkened room. They were sad, and unforgiving.

"I leave because I can't bear to see you all hurt anymore. Ginny, I'm the one that brought all of that death to Hogwarts, all of the death to the wizarding world. I brought death to Hermione's parents! I can't go around pretending it wasn't my doing." He shoved his hands in his pockets, unwilling to look in her eyes. "I won't lay that burden, the burden of being near me, on you. Bad things always happen to the people I care about."

Ginny's jaw dropped slightly. As soon as she recovered from his admission, she pulled herself up tall and brushed herself off. He wasn't going to do this again. "We're back to that again are we? When will you understand that you didn't do anything to anyone. You did not decide to storm Hogwarts, or to make Horcruxes."

"But I'm the reason it all happened, Ginny! If it can happen once, it'll happen again." He interrupted, throwing his hands up in the air.

With a deep breath, Ginny tried to call her temper. This self-loathing kick he had turned onto was infuriating. It only took a few steps until she was standing directly in front of him. "You didn't choose to torment or to kill. You chose to save. And I'm sorry, but I will not let you sit here and act as though you're the worst thing that ever happened to us. Without you, we wouldn't be here now. So stop trying to be so modest." She stood tall, waiting for his eyes to meet hers. When they finally did, she could see the guard beginning to drop. "We miss you when you're gone, Harry. I miss you. No job in the world will stop that from happening."

"I could try."

Ginny nodded. "You could. But it won't work. I've been holding out for you to understand. I won't leave. I can't, it's impossible for me to now. And soon, you won't be able to get rid of me so easily."

Harry blinked, "So you are training to be closer to me."

"That could be part of the reason. I'm a big girl though, Harry. I know it seems like I need protecting, but I can take care of myself. I want to help and be a part of something great. It's only an added bonus that you're there." Ginny shifted in her spot, waiting, hoping something would happen." His eyes clouded over, but before he could protest, she placed a finger over his lips. "There is only one way in this world you would have any say in the matter."

He sighed against her finger. His warmth breath sent shivers down her spine. "I'm sorry, Ginny. I'm sorry I didn't write. I'm sorry I hurt you… again. But I'm not sorry about wanting to keep you safe."

Ginny gave a weak smile. "Well, that's where this plan comes into play perfectly. We'll both be Aurors… and you can keep an eye on me out in the field. I do think my plans through."

"I don't like it." He muttered as his hand fell on her shoulder. "I don't like it at all." Inch by inch, his fingers moved closer to her face, where his hand played with the hair at the base of her neck.

"I know. But its happening." Her finger moved from his lips to his face. She caressed his cheek the way she had only ever been able to dream about since Hogwarts.

Harry's breath quickened. His hand trailed up her neck. "Yeah, it's happening…" He whispered. He pulled her towards him as an agonizingly slow pace. Ginny's eyes closed as she held her breath for what was to come. She licked her lips in apprehension, feeling his warm breath on her lips was almost too much. His lips brushed against hers. They were soft, so very soft. She pressed hers against his vigorously, wanting him to know just how much she missed him. His other hand wove around her waist, pulling her closer.

"Step away from the sister!" A voice boomed from the doorway. Ginny groaned when Harry let go of her and jumped back a few paces. "You didn't think we'd let you snog our baby sister in our storage room, did you, Harry?" Fred teased.

"You're a right git, you know that Fred?" Ginny scolded.

"I believe thanks are in order for your dear brothers, missy?" George reminded, stalking order to the entrance. "Come on, store's closing."

Harry was blushing, as he walked shamefully past the twins. "Um, good room in there. Very… spacious."

Ginny, however, shook her head, and whacked Fred in the shoulder on her way out. Harry waited for her at the door, and held out his hand for her to take. With a smile on her lips, Ginny glanced back and mouthed, "Thanks," to her grinning brothers.

_Thanks for reading! Please review!_


	10. What A Row

Papers were piled high throughout the brightly lit room. Hermione thumbed her way through a large stack of old and creased journals; she bit her lip lightly in frustration. There was so much to finish in such a short amount of time. Now she had three major assignments in the works, a wedding to plan, and a trip to America to get ready for. With a sigh, she glanced towards the window. The wind was howling outside. Rain splattered against the glass every few minutes, continually drawing her out of her work.

How she wished to be in the Hogwarts library right now, a place where life was simpler. She closed her eyes, imaging herself seated at her favorite table, in the very back, far from all the commotion of anxious first years and immature third years. With a sigh, she felt herself relaxing. Hogwarts had always made her feel safe, and untouchable by harmful forces. With a life as full and hectic as Hermione's, feeling safe made everything possible.

The door behind her creaked, sending her back to reality, back to the Burrow. She threw down her journals with a huff and rolled her eyes. "Yes?" She asked, clearly annoyed.

The intruder cleared his throat, Hermione turned in time to see Ron slide his hands in his pockets. He frowned at her. "Sorry. I didn't mean to- I mean I didn't know you were busy. Are you busy?" He said in a rush, leaning against the doorframe.

Hermione's expression changed immediately when she saw him. Her eyes widen with cheer. "Oh no! Well I was, but I seemed to have hit a block. You're just in time." Ron blushed at her enthusiasm. "Where have you been? It feels like I haven't seen you in ages…" She asked, when he didn't reply.

Ron shrugged his shoulders, pushing himself off from the frame, taking a few steps closer. "Around, I guess. I've been spending a lot of time at George's flat trying to get some writing done." He gazed out the window at the swaying trees.

"Oh," Hermione sounded, leaning back in her chair. "Why George's?"

"No real reason. It's just been busy here. This house hasn't been this active in a while, what with you, Ginny and Harry all here." Ron saw Hermione's eyes turn apologetic and quickly added, "Not that it's a big deal. George's has wanted to rent out Fred's old room for some time; this is like a… trial run."

Hermione's eyes lit up at that. "Oh, that's great, Ron. I'm not sure how wonderful of an idea it is to live with George." She giggled, "But that would be great, for you."

Ron nodded with a chuckle. "I think so too. I haven't decided yet, but its looking good. Besides, I think Harry will be receiving the majority of the shenanigans from Fred and George. I hear him and Ginny are their new product testers." Hermione smiled.

"So you heard as well?" She affirmed. She watched his face for any sign of discontent. Ron was never one to like Ginny's boyfriends. Just because Harry was his best friend, didn't mean he automatically would receive a congratulations from the Weasley brothers. "So?"

"So?" Ron mocked, crossing his arms once he made it to her desk. He sat half way on the desk, in the emptiest place he could find. "I'm glad they're finally together. Aren't you?"

Hermione rolled her eyes at him. "Of course I am. Ginny has done nothing but complain about Harry since he first left England. I figured you would be less than excited about your best friend with your sister. Or have you realized Ginny is a grown woman?"

Ron looked taken aback. "Ginny? A woman? We must be thinking of another tempered redhead, Hermione. I don't remember Ginny ever being declared a woman." He shook his head, with low laugh.

"You know, she is practically our age? Don't you think I'm a grown woman?" Hermione asked, absentmindedly as she threw the journals in front her onto a nearby pile. She hadn't noticed Ron's Adam's apple moving at an incredibly fast rate as he gulped, trying to find a response.

When a response could not come to mind, Ron did was he does best, and ignored the question altogether. "Ginny's my sister, and Harry's my best mate, I don't know how I could have asked for a better match. Harry knows what he's up against if he ever hurts Ginny. That's the plus of having her with someone who's seen what we do to old boyfriends."

Hermione sighed, "You know, that could be why he stayed away for so long. How does that make you feel? Having dented your only sister's happiness for so very long?" Hermione teased, twirling her chair to face Ron. She crossed her legs, relaxing into the rhythm of her and Ron's banter.

"If that be the case, we've helped him in the long run, toughened him up a bit. Anyone with Ginny has to be able to take the heat when the time comes. They can't be afraid of taking a hit now and then. She's not exactly Miss Nonchalant." Ron stretched his arms out with a yawn and nodded towards Hermione's desktop. "What's all that?"

"Oh," Hermione muttered. "That is everything I need to do by next week. The pile over there is full of exciting research involving past werewolf rights and treaties." Ron raised his eyebrow at her, disbelieving. "It is quite fascinating really. And those journals have my notes and testimonies on the lack of equality for werewolf wizards and witches. All of which I need to organize yet… I forgot about that."

Hermione grabbed a quill from nearby and jotted down a note for herself to organize her other notes. Her eyes crinkled in concentration, Ron gazed at her in silence. He watched her place the end of the quill near her mouth and breathed a sigh when she bit her lip.

"So," He grumbled, shifting uncomfortably. "What's that big book down there? Some more of your light reading?

Hermione blinked, jarred from her thoughts and glanced quickly down at the large book near her feet. She laughed, bending over to lift it onto her lap. "Actually, this is something that has been nagging me all day." She turned it up so Ron could read the title, _Cakes, Cakes, Cakes: 182 pastries for the perfect wedding_. "I have to decide on a type of cake. And I have no idea where to start." With a look of uncertainty in his direction, she heaved the book onto the desk.

"I could help." Hermione looked at him curiously. "I mean, I love cake, and I know you well enough to sort through the cake you wouldn't want. That way you could read through your notes at the same time…?" He tried.

Hermione's throat tightened at the thought of Ron helping her plan her wedding. A slow churning started in her stomach. He made a point though; it would be more efficient with him weeding out the unlikely candidates. She gave him a soft smile. "Sure, that would be delightful."

Ron conjured a chair up, and pulled the book to his lap. The two of them sat in silence for many minutes. Hermione opened another journal and pulled it close, as she backed away from the desk. Her eyes ran over the words, only occasionally stealing glances Ron's direction. He was bent over the book, scanning the list of ingredients for each cake with his finger. He looked like he was in deep concentration.

While reading about a particularly distasteful werewolf trial, Hermione saw Ron's foot move out of the corner of her eye. It inched ever so closely to hers, just barely touching her. The light touch sent a shiver up her spine, even through their shoes. She tried to control it, leaning back into the chair she was seated in again. Ron's eyes were still focused on the book in front of him. He hadn't noticed, or at least showed no noticed of the contact.

Hermione shook her head and sighed, cursing herself for being ridiculous. "Find anything yet?" She croaked, coughing at the sound of her voice.

"Just now, yeah. How about chocolate with strawberry filling? The picture looks delicious." He stated, turning the book around to show her. His eyes were bright, awaiting her reaction.

"That does look quite good." She replied. "Why don't you mark it?"

He nodded and added a piece of paper to the page. Hermione swallowed loudly, and tried to focus on the work before her. Her eyes kept wandering back Ron though. It had been so long since she had sat in a room with only him. He licked his lips, turning the page. Old electricity surged through her. She had thought that those feelings had disappeared as her love and respect for Caden had grown. But now she was beginning to see that perhaps the stories were right. First loves never die. If you could call, what she had for Ron, love. She had tried to tell herself it was a stupid teenage crush. That analysis normally worked, especially now that she had Caden. Nonetheless, she couldn't seem to tear herself away from Ron's mouth…

As if sensing her thoughts, Ron licked his lips again. She closed her eyes, scared of whatever she was feeling right now. Being in this little room with Ron Weasley had somehow taken her back in time. She took a few calming breaths, trying to release some unwanted tension and confusion.

"You okay, Hermione?" Ron asked his voice full of concern. She nodded, opening her eyes and playing off a smile. He narrowed his bright blue eyes at her. "I don't believe you. Maybe you should take a break?"

"Perhaps, I should. I think I'll write to Ginny. Let her know that Harry has nothing to worry about when it comes to her big brothers." Hermione suggested with another smile.

Ron laughed. "I don't know, I'm not promising anything." Hermione twirled back to her desk and grabbed a busy of paper to busy herself. Ron stared at her. "You know, I always knew they'd find their way back to each other."

"Hm?" Hermione inquired in thought. "Why's that?"

Ron shrugged. "It just seems like they're one of those couples where you just know. They've been through so much together that they can't be themselves unless they're with each other. They're a part of each other, and always will be. We all knew that, it just took them time to figure it out." Hermione's breath caught in her throat at such a profound statement coming from Ron. She glanced at Ron, he was grinning at her. "First love never dies, isn't that what your muggle stories say?"

She couldn't speak, afraid that her voice might betray her. It was as if he had read her thoughts, which couldn't be possibly because Ron had never learned the art of Occlumency. He was waiting for an answer, so she merely nodded, before turning her eyes back to her letter. "So, are you saying you still have feelings for Rebecca?" She found herself mumbling. The moment the words escaped her lips, she had hoped Ron wasn't paying attention. But of course, he decided now to finally listen to what she was saying.

He shook his head, his expression unreadable. "I miss her sometimes. But Rebecca wasn't my first love per se, if that's what we're talking about. We never had something like Ginny and Harry have." He was looking at her intently now, trying to gauge her reaction, or perhaps where this conversation was leading.

"I guess I always thought, you know, you two seemed so… happy." Hermione finished, somewhat disheartened. She gazed out the window, focusing on the pouring rain. Memories flooded her mind, her heart clenched at the renewed vision of the two of them together; Ron holding Rebecca, them laughing together at the dinner table, or even worse, the awkward moment in which Hermione ran into Rebecca coming out of Ron's room in only a bath robe. Her eyes glazed over, although she willed herself to shake off the images.

Ron saw this, and narrowed his eyes in confusion. "We were, happy I mean. Of course we were… Everything seemed perfect on the surface, but I don't think we could have ever made it. We weren't as strong as Ginny or Harry when we were together…" He gulped, flipping through the pages of the cookbook quickly, not reading single word. "If I've ever been truly in love, it happened a long time ago. Sort of snuck up on me. I didn't even know what it was until it was too late."

Hermione was surprised by the news. Her thoughts drifted back to 6th year. Her face darkened, as she retorted mockingly, "So what, you think you were in love with Lavender once upon a time?" Her voice was cold, unable to hide the disappointment and irritation she still felt. She couldn't understand why she was continuing this topic… It wasn't a good idea for her to pick through their past again. Bringing up Rebecca was bold enough for one night. She couldn't remember the last time the two had talked about something as controversy as their love lives.

Ron's head snapped up. "What? Lavender?" He said at a loss for words.

"Well she was the first girl who let you stick your tongue down her throat, was she not? As a boy, you must have thought that was love. You did wear that ridiculous necklace for her after all." Hermione said coolly. At this point, she had stopped writing and dropped her quill. She was now glaring at Ron, who sat bewildered a few inches from her, the cake book still open in his lap. It seemed this was always how they ended up. She couldn't seem to let him get away with the hurt he'd caused her so long ago. Hours after this fight, she would regret it, because he didn't know any better.

"I-I never wore that necklace. You really think-" Ron stammered, his cheeks flushing at the memory.

Hermione interrupted him, "I don't quite understand how you could have loved that girl though. You hardly knew her. But I suppose most teenage boys wouldn't past up a good snog every once and a while. Pity it ended so soon." With an eyebrow raised, she waited for him to retort to her sarcasm. Like clockwork, his expression turned fierce.

"I suppose I learned from the best, eh? Or have you forgotten your fraternization with the enemy fourth year? You knew him so well, didn't ya?" He slammed the book shut, the sound making Hermione jump in her chair. Her eyes fluttered with surprise, only to open again with a renewed annoyance.

"Don't you dare compare my friendship with Viktor to your pathetic excuse for a relationship with _Lav-Lav_." She scolded, leaned towards him in fury. Her hands were at her sides, clenched in fists. "You hardly knew the girl. All you cared about was getting a snog whenever you wanted."

"Like you never snogged _Vicky_." Ron mocked. He pushed himself up from the chair, craning over Hermione. His tone was dripping in ridicule. "We all know he wasn't much of a talker."

Hermione, wanting to even out the battlefield, shot up from her seat, causing Ron to take a few steps back. Her hands flew to her hip. Ron could see he was getting to her. Her eyes were ablaze. Before he could stop himself, he heard the words falling from his mouth, "Lavender may have been a fluke and a stupid mistake, but at least I've learned from that."

Hermione's eyes narrowed. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"I tried the next time. I tried with Rebecca. You went from Vicky to what? Caden? Real improvement. You're the same scared girl you were fourth year. Afraid that no one will ask you to the dance, so you have to say yes to the first bloke to ask. You aren't ready to get married. And you know it!"

Hermione's jaw fell, her eyes widened at the hit. "How dare you." She fumed.

Ron took a step towards her, wanting nothing more than to add fuel to the fire. "You know it. Everyone knows that you're with Caden because you're afraid there is nothing else out there. You hardly know him, not enough to decide to spend the rest of your life with him. I'm the only one who's willing to tell it to your face. So there, it's said."

"You take that back." Hermione whispered. Tears sprang from behind her eyes. She would not cry in front of him though, she would not give them that glory.

"There's no point in that is there? Why bother, it's the truth." Ron said, harshly. His eyes bore into hers. She knew he could see the water building up.

"Get out." She said as calmly as she could. "I'm done trying to understand you. I'm done trying make you happy. This is my life, Ron. If you don't like it, you don't have to be a part of it. Get out."

Ron glared at her, "If you marry him, you're ruining your life."

She shook her head, "Ronald Weasley, you're still the same insufferable, selfish boy from Hogwarts. Silly me for thinking that just because you're taking a big boy step and moving out of your parents' house, you might be growing up." She exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air as she turned her back on him.

"And you're still the same brainy girl from Hogwarts, who thinks she can control everything." Ron replied, with a cold laugh as he stalked to the door. It caused shivers to run up Hermione's spine. "So, big surprise. Don't listen to me. Go on and plan you're perfect wedding. Like I care."

_I obviously do not own anything Harry Potter. It's all the wonderful J.K. Rowling. Thanks for reading! Please review! _


	11. Just A Little Push

**A/N: Here's the next chapter ya'll! Hope you like it. Thanks for reading, please review!

**Disclaimer: All of these characters (and the world they're in) belong to the wonderful J.K. Rowling, I'm simply borrowing!

Yellow light peeked in through the curtains as the sun struggled to surpass the clouds in the sky above. Each morning had been like this lately, as the days grew longer, slowly but surely. Soon the air would be warmer and the sun will stand brightly in the sky. Ginny smiled to herself as she peered out the windows, looking forward to the new beginning that spring always brought. The Burrow was a beautiful place to be in the spring and summer months, her favorite time of her.

New beginnings were happening everywhere she looked. First Fred and Angelina, then Hermione, and now… it was her turn. She tore her eyes away from the window, gripping a steaming cup of tea in her hands. Her eyes fell on the note lying on the counter. She had read it more than a few times since she had awoken to a tapping at her window. She knew who that uneven scribble belonged to before she even began reading.

_Good morning. I'll be in the office all day, it looks like I may have another job at hand … You'll be hearing back from me throughout the day though, if I have anything to say about it. When you get sick of me, just remember, you asked for it. –Harry_

The sun was shining, and she received her first letter from Harry in quite some time. Today had to be a good day. She was sipping her tea in thought when a slight pop interrupted. Immediately, she turned to the clock in the kitchen, every one of the Weasleys were away from home, beside herself. With the newly established protection spells, there was only one other person it could be. "Hermione?" She called, setting down her cup, and pulling her robe around her a bit tighter. "I thought you were supposed to be at work?"

"I am. I mean I was, but I forgot my book. Have you seen it?" Hermione entered in a rush, her hair flying behind her, wild with curls. She tore through the kitchen bookshelves. Any papers lying around were tipped up and down, in hopes that they were hiding what she was looking for.

"Which book? You've left plenty here recently." Ginny laughed, watching Hermione run around the room. "Perhaps you should invest in a backpack?" Hermione glared at her when she got a chance, opening the cupboard above the sink.

"It's that one we used 3rd year, remember? Monsters Book of Monsters, a ghastly thing, considers werewolves monsters… I need it for an example today at my meeting." She turned around and surveyed the room. "I thought I left it on the table, with my notes. But someone must have moved it."

"Maybe its in the living room?" Ginny asked, making her way to the door.

"It could be…" Hermione whispered, running past Ginny. She opened a closet, and stepped inside, when Ginny heard a crash.

"Hermione!" She called, "Everything okay in there."

Hermione jumped out of the closet with a startled expression. "That wasn't me… I thought everyone was at work…" She stepping backwards a few steps towards the fireplace. "I should go…"

Ginny shook her head. "No that must have just been Pig. Ron normally lets him out during the day, he can be a klutz." She watched as Hermione's eyes rolled at the sound of Ron's name. It seemed like the perfect opportunity. "So, speaking of Ron, what happened with you two? One minute you're sitting out on the porch in the snow with him and then next you can't be in the same room."

Hermione snorted lightly. "I don't feel like talking about it Ginny, you know your brother. He can be a right git some days. And I've had enough." Her hands flew on her hips, in frustration. "I suppose I'll have to go and hope Flourish and Blotts has one. I'm sure I bought the last copy earlier this month though… They're quite dangerous to keep in stock, you know?"

Ginny simply said, "Mhm" half-heartedly. She hoped she could annoy Hermione enough with the thoughts of Ron to get her to spill something. "You know, Ron may have a copy."

"I would prefer not to borrow anything from Ron, thanks." She glanced at her muggle watch. "Only an hour before the presentation… Maybe Harry still has his copy."

Ginny shook her head. "Yeah, but its probably packed away some where. It'd be easier just to go with Ron's copy upstairs. He won't be home for a while, if that's what you're worried about." Ginny tried again.

Hermione's voice grew high, "I don't particularly care when Ron gets here. His business is his business, just as mine is mine." She picked up a blanket from the couch and began folding it. "Of course, he's never been able to understand that concept." She said in a huff. Her movements were slow and precise, smoothing out every crease.

"Oh no, did he say something out of line again?" Ginny said trying her best to act surprised. She never actually thought her brother would take her advice; he'd push Hermione away before he'd ever actually tell her the truth. Some days she wondered why he was put in Gryffindor…

Hermione sat the blanket on the couch again, evening out the wrinkles before taking a seat next to it. "Of course he did, he absolutely hates Caden. Or maybe he just hates that I'm happy. I can't tell which. It's infuriating. There we were having an actual conversation about love and-"

"You talked about love?" Ginny's jaw dropped, maybe he had told Hermione the truth and she… got mad? No. It couldn't be.

"Well, yes," Hermione's eyebrows crinkled together. "Only a bit, until he brought up Lavender and how he was so in love with her." Her voice grew so quiet that Ginny almost didn't hear. However, her laughter told all that she had.

"You've got to be kidding," She said through gasps. "Ron in love with Lavender? Come on Hermione, there is no way." Hermione glared are her. "I mean, she showed interest in Ron, which was what he needed, he wasn't in love."

Hermione shrugged, "There was no one else he could have been talking about. He said there was someone in his past that he thought he was in love with, but he didn't figure it out until it was too late. Who else could it be?"

Ginny's eyes popped at the sound of Ron's honesty. She opened her mouth to speak when Hermione held up her hand. "No, don't even tell me who you think it is. I don't care. I'm through putting up with him. After all I've done for him, he decides to thank me by telling me that I'm ruining my life getting married. It's absurd. And he even tried to wrap you all up in the mess as well."

At that moment, Hermione stared at Ginny pleadingly. Ginny knew what it was she wanted to hear. Her eyes were filled with angry, and yet, something else, uncertainty maybe? Even though Ron had spoken the truth, more harshly than Ginny believed, she couldn't tell Hermione that, could she? "I'm sorry he said those things. I've told you before, if you think this is a good idea, the wedding I mean, then I believe you. It's your choice, right? No one else's."

Hermione bowed her head, closing her eyes. "Yes, it's my life. That's exactly what I told him. Apparently he doesn't care. Git."

"Hermione, you know he cares… if he didn't, he wouldn't bother saying anything to you, would he? Ron just has trouble sometimes putting all he feels into words we'd understand. You know that better than most." Ginny said with a few steps closer to Hermione. She took a seat in front of the fireplace. "But, I don't think you know Ron as well as you think you do. Lavender was nothing, just as his crush on Fleur was nothing. If he was in love as he said once upon a time, maybe he kept it from you… Didn't you say that he didn't even know what he was feeling until it was too late?"

"Yes. But like I said, I don't care. I've decided its probably better for my sanity if I didn't." Hermione stated, pushing herself up from the couch. "Can you tell me where Ron's book is? I can't chance not having it for my meeting…"

Ginny smiled weakly, "Of course. Its in his room…" She paused a moment, as she remembered a valuable piece of information. If she told Hermione, there was no going back. She wouldn't technically be betraying Ron's trust, she'd only help him along a bit. Its what he wants after all… "In his chest of drawers, in the bottom drawer I believe. And if you can't find his book, I'm sure there's a folder in there was his notes."

Hermione looked at her unconvinced. "His notes?"

"Okay, so they're probably copies of your notes." The redhead laughed, "They'll be helpful either way."

Hermione glanced from Ginny to the stairs, then back and Ginny. "Alright, but only because I'm running short on time. I'll owl you later." Hermione smiled, grabbing onto the stair's railing.

Ginny grinned, "Have fun. I better get ready for work too." With a wave she went to empty out her teacup.

Hermione took the stairs two steps at a time. When she neared Ron's door, butterflies erupted in her stomach. She knew he wasn't home, but all she could think about was their last fight. She hated that they always seemed to end up here, not on speaking terms. He knew just what to say to her to make her stark angry. She closed her eyes as she pushed his bedroom door open.

Pig hooted loudly when she entered causing her to jump back a step. She raised her hand to her chest, startled. Before she could say anything, he flew over and perched himself on top of the chest of drawers Hermione was about to search through.

"I know I'm not supposed to be in here. But he won't even notice it's gone." Hermione reasoned with the bird. He stared at her with large eyes, and hooted again. Hermione shook her head. "He won't mind. I'm sure half these notes are mine anyway…" She continued as she stood resignedly in front of the drawers.

Hermione crouched towards the floor. Her hand hesitated at the bottom drawer, her fingers barely curled around the handles. She couldn't help but think this was an invasion of privacy. Ron never went snooping through her belongings… And to make it worse, they weren't even talking to each other.

Pig hooted again from above her head. She gazed up at him through her eyelashes and whispered, "It's only a book" before pulling the drawer open completely.

It looked as though a tornado had swept through recently. Papers lay all over, accompanied by various books and trinkets from the past. Hermione peeled through the old owls from Hogwarts, chocolate frog cards, and Chudley Cannon game favors, trying to find something that looked remotely useful. There was no book, but she did see the folder Ginny must have been talking about. It was odd; the folder was the only item that looked as though it had been organized recently.

Hermione was just about to open it when Pig flapped his winds wildly, and began flying about the room. The sudden movement caused Hermione to fall from her crouched stance, allowing the contents of the folder to scatter on the floor. She glared at Pig who had begun to fly in circles not far from Hermione's head. "I do not have time for this Pig-" She started, pausing as she took in the papers and clippings beside her.

There were so many. Some were of Ron's articles written for the Prophet, the Chudley Cannons big game, but most had nothing to do with sports at all. Hermione picked up the one closest to her. She stared at herself standing beside Kingsley Shacklebolt at a press conference. She was smilingly happily. Hermione remembered that day well; it was the first conference she was able to attend because she added a considerable amount of research gained from S.P.E.W. Ron had teased her nonstop about that day…

She set that picture back in the folder, along with a few more of Ron's. Then she saw it, the pile the S.P.E.W picture had come from. Underneath a Quidditch review was a large stack of newspaper clippings, all of which had some mention of Hermione or her various projects. She hadn't been in many articles, but the ones she had were sitting in front of her now. Most were recent, but there were a few, by Rita Skeeter, from as far back at 4th year.

Hermione narrowed her eyes, thoroughly bewildered. None of the papers in here were of Harry or Ginny. Ron hadn't kept mementos of either of them, only her… and for such a long time.

"Hermione?" A voice called from the stairs. "Did you find it?"

Hermione swallowed hard, taking one last look at the scattered mess in front of her, before gathering them up at top speed. "No Ginny, nothing's up here…" She trailed off. In her haste, she had forgotten a clipping. There stood Caden with his arm around her, placing a light kiss on her head. Their engagement announcement. The edges were rough, as though they had been ripped from the paper, instead of carefully cut like the others. _If he was in love as he said once upon a time, maybe he kept it from you… Didn't you say that he didn't even know what he was feeling until it was too late? _

Pig hooted again. Startled, Hermione quickly stuffed the filled folder back into the drawer and slammed it shut, all the while glaring at the bird. "Yeah, yeah you told me so, right?" She mocked, opening the door. Ginny met her at the bottom of the stairs.

"So no luck?"

"Yes- No, I mean no, no luck." Hermione stumbled over her words, trying to smile at Ginny, although her thoughts were any where but on that book.

"You okay?" Ginny asked her arms crossed in front of her. Her eyebrows rose as Hermione's face reddened.

Hermione waved her off, shielding her face. "Yup… Got to go, see you later, Gin." And with that she was got in a 'pop'.

Ginny watched Hermione go, a smile forming on her lips.

Footsteps sounded from the kitchen, Ginny turned to see the approaching Weasley. "You look quite happy little sis." George said from the doorway with a sandwich in one hand. He leaned to one side in a questioning manner. "Was that Hermione?"

Ginny nodded. "And I am quite happy, thank you."

George chuckled, "Any idea on what the fuss is all about with her and Ron? Mum's been asking nonstop, it's like she thinks Fred and I still live here."

"Ron just said something we've all been thinking… You know, I wish they would both see the light soon. But I figure, they may need a little push." Ginny answered, her grin growing.

"Sounds like someone else I know. Weasley's are so stubborn." George remarked, nudging Ginny's shoulder.

"Only this time, no need for your buddy invention. I think I may have just opened a door for them. You and Fred aren't the only smart ones in the family." Ginny added, with a glance towards the clock. "I've got to go."

George nodded, taking a seat on the couch and took a large bite of his lunch. "Good thing you came up with something, you know, because our spell doesn't exist." He said casually.

Ginny, who was standing before the fireplace ready to floo, turned on the spot. "What? But you said-"

"We had to say something didn't we. We may not be the only smart ones in the family, but we're by far the smartest." He said with a large grin.


	12. What If's and How So's

_Author's Note: Sorry this chapter took so long for me to finish! It's been a crazy past few weeks here; and I've also been crazy in love with my other story Something There. Anyway, hope you all enjoy the chapter! I'm starting the next soon! :D Please review, they always make me smile._

"You've been a little tense lately. Is everything okay?" Caden asked, removing his reading glasses from his face. He peered up at Hermione with curious eyes. He sat only inches from her, across the table, but Hermione had forgotten his very presence. She gave him weak smile, and lifted her teacup to her lips.

"Been busy, I suppose." She replied shortly. It had been a few days shy of a week since Hermione ruffled through Ron's belongings and understood exactly why curiosity killed the cat. Her mind was filled with what if's, why not's, and how so's. The timing of these questions was purely comical, although Hermione was not laughing.

She felt horrible. If Caden only knew the thoughts that kept her busy. Perhaps he should… She thought suddenly. Looking up from her tea, she saw him nodding his head, his eyes trailing back to the newspaper. He seemed content, and assumed Hermione was too. Then again, when had she really given him anything to doubt? She was careful with her emotions around Caden, a task that was proved to be difficult around others.

The water between them was rarely rocked. If it ever did, she would quickly find a way to smooth over the tides before bigger problems could develop. Everything was fine… always.

"I'm meeting Harry for lunch today. Will you be at the office?" She probed, trying to feel any amount of tension between them. He could be as upset and doubtful as she is, but only better at hiding it. Men seem to be able to avoid their feelings much more easily than women, this she observed over years with two male best friends. But her theory was quickly fading as his comfortable demeanor continued.

"Of course, I was hoping to catch a bite to eat with you two, but there's a lot of work to be done. I have mountains of paper work to get through by the wedding." He smiled, as if the thought of the wedding just made his morning a little brighter. Hermione instantly felt her insides squirm.

"There will be plenty of other opportunities. Harry's quite a bore too, you know." She added with a nervous laugh.

"The Boy Who Lived, what a boring life he must lead." Caden chuckled along with Hermione. She was thankful he couldn't see past her laugh. In truth, she needed this time with Harry to talk through some very delicate issues weaving their way through her mind.

Hermione stood slowly, bringing her teacup with her. "I suppose I should be going. I need to run to Dervish and Banges before work. See you tonight." She stated, rather than asked.

"Actually, I had an idea to run past you." Caden said as Hermione begun to pull on her coat. "I know we both agreed not to have any sort of party before the wedding, but I've come across a few rare items." Hermione raised her eyebrows skeptically. "Five tickets to the Puddlemere United versus Wimbourne Wasps game. It's supposed to be the sporting event of the year." His excitement was evident as his eyes light up and a grin grew across his face.

For a moment, Hermione wondered why he would ever think she would want to go to a Quidditch game, and then she remembered. He has no idea she hates the sport. He has no idea she hates brooms and bludgers, nor does he have any idea she can't stand the thought of flying. Now could be a good time to explain that fact, but it's a bit late for that. And he does love thinking she likes Quidditch.

"For a pre-wedding party?" She asks. Her voice is hesitant, but she tries not to falter. "I-I don't think that will work." Caden looks stunned for a moment, as Hermione does her best to find a good excuse. "It's just Ginny has already begun to plan a bachelorette kind of party for me."

"A party, but we agreed that wasn't happening… Hermione I hardly know anyone from here." Caden half scolded. She, of course, knew the fact he was playing on, but it wasn't exactly true.

"You could invite some men from work. And Harry, I'm sure he would love to see that match. If I cancel, Ginny will be crushed." This would be true, if Ginny was planning a party, Hermione thought, trying to brush aside the guilt she was beginning to feel.

He frowned in her direction. "You're telling me you want me to have a bachelor party?" He raised his eyebrow slightly, waiting for a response.

"I would be okay if you spent a night with the guys watching some Quidditch…" Hermione started.

"It's not just _some _Quidditch, Hermione." He sounded perplexed. His devotion to the game, for a moment, reminded Hermione of Ron, but she squashed that thought quickly.

She rolled her eyes, "Sorry. But yes, go to the match. I'm sure you'll have a wonderful time." For the first time, Hermione thought she saw concern filter across Caden's face. Being unsure of what this concern was directed towards, Hermione chose to ignore it. There was no need to shed light on new problems.

Before he could say anything, she waved to him with a smile and apparated.

Harry looked at the menu, knowing that he wouldn't understand anything he read. It was Hermione's turn to pick out the restaurant, and she loves French food. However, when he peered over the top of the menu in her direction he saw an unusual sight. Her eyes sat stationary on the page, they were full of something much different from her normal excitement. Worry, or was it fear?

"Any idea what you'd like?" Harry asked hesitantly. Her eyes grew wide when he spoke, telling him that she had indeed been in her own world. Yes, something was definitely bothering her.

She quickly composed herself again and smiled. "The usual, I suppose." A few moments later, the waiter came with a bright grin to take their orders. After he left, silence engulfed them, another odd occurance.

"So…" Harry started.

"Do you remember when I was on the Prophet with Kingsley?" Hermione interrupted quietly, and then quickly added, "It was for, S.P.E.W."

Harry nodded with an inquisitive look in his eyes. "Yes, I think so."

"You wouldn't happen to have a copy of that would you?" Hermione asked. After seeing the confusion fill his bright green eyes, she tentatively picked up her water glass and took a sip.

"Should I?" He asked slowly.

"I was just curious. I was reminded of it, and I suppose I wanted to take a look at my glory days." She shrugged and laughed nervously. "It's been a while since I did anything worthwhile."

Harry shook his head, "You have incredibly high standards for yourself. You've done more worthwhile things in three years than many can do in a lifetime. I'm sure you have much more brilliance left to spread. It's what you were made for." Hermione flushed a little at his words. He hoped she believed him.

"Sometimes I feel like I'm stuck. I don't feel as…motivated or pushed as I did back in Hogwarts. It's almost as if I've forgotten how to be me." Hermione confessed in a whisper. Harry was taken aback by the abruptness of her concern. She was only 20 after all, how could anyone feel as though they've done all they could?

"I catch myself not being me at times too." Harry tried. He swallowed loudly unsure how to continue. "We're adults now, we have to pick and choose what we want out of life. Sometimes the little things from back in school don't seem as important. But you're still you, Hermione. You're about to marry a great man, are in the middle of your werewolf rights push; you've got a lot going for you."

Hermione laughed as he said these last words. "Thank you, Dr. Harry. Hearing you say all of that makes me feel worse. I shouldn't be worried, besides everyone lies a little, right?"

"Lies?" He stumbled, "Who's lying?"

"Me. This morning, well most of Caden and my relationship really…" Hermione trailed off, leaving Harry completely baffled. She then adds, "He wanted me to go to a Quidditch game." As if that clears everything up.

"You hate Quidditch. I was surprised you ever went to the Tornadoes game."

"I know, but he doesn't. I feel like I've made myself a picture perfect fiancée for him. I tiptoe around his annoying habits, when truth be told, I can't stand some of the things he does. Like telling my family, I'm moving to America? Or planning a Quidditch gathering without my input." She says this all in a rush, as if the thoughts come into her mind at too great of speed to process completely.

"You could tell him. Stop lying."

Hermione looked at Harry sweetly, trying not to get frustrated with his statement of the obvious. "I tried today, which ended in me lying again, to smooth things over. Which by the way, I need Ginny to throw me a bachelorette party, in 5 days. I hope that's not too short notice."

Harry chuckled, just as the waiter was setting his plate in front of him. "She's been planning it for weeks. Pick the date and time, and you'll be golden."

Hermione eyes grew wide. "I told her not to!" She flustered.

"But now aren't you glad she did?" Harry grinned for a moment, and then his face grew stony. "In all honesty, you can't marry a man who hardly knows you, Hermione. You should talk to him. Stop feeling bad for not being the person he wants you to be. He's not going to love you any less because you can't stand Quidditch."

She took a deep breath, and began twirling her fork in her food. "He loves that I love Quidditch." She stated, flatly.

"But you don't. Stop being something you're not. My best friend is wonderful just the way she is." Harry watched as Hermione got lost in her thoughts again. The more he sees, the more he believes Ron's right. Perhaps Hermione is better off without Caden. He's a good man on paper, but maybe that's all he'll ever be.


	13. Assumptions and Accusations

_A/N: I'm so sorry for such a long wait. Hopefully this chapter is to your liking. Only a few more chapters left! Thanks for reading._

The clouds covered the once laminating sunlight as Hermione walked briskly with Ginny by her side. The two were late for her own wedding rehearsal. Having taken more time than expected with the cake and the flower preparations, it left them both very little time to fix themselves up and apparate to the gardens. After days of consideration, Hermione had finally decided to have the wedding in the gardens near her childhood home.

There was still a bite of cold in the air, but the tent being set up would do wonders to block that. Hermione pulled her coat in tighter around her as the two of them rounded the corner, and the rest of the family came into view. It was a small rehearsal, only the parents and wedding party allowed. Most were busying themselves with planning still. The Weasleys had been so helpful with the arrangements; perhaps Molly was just excited to have another wedding so close to the family. As Hermione peered ahead, a gnawing feeling developed in her stomach. "Ginny, where is Ron?" She asked, his tall frame missing from crowd ahead.

Ginny, slightly bewildered, responded with curiosity. "He wasn't sure if you wanted him here. With the mess going on between you two, I assumed it'd be better if he stayed home."

Remembering the fight, and all the words spoken between them, Hermione agreed. "I suppose, you're right. I had hoped he would apologize by now. He'll be at the wedding though, won't he? Even if we're not on speaking terms, I would-"

"He wouldn't miss that. You can count on it." Ginny confirmed, stealing a glance sideways at Hermione's reaction.

"Good. I don't think I could get through that day without him. I mean, he's always been there, for all of my big days. We shouldn't ruin that because of some stupid fight."

"He didn't have a problem with your other 'big days'." Ginny rebutted.

"He hardly approved of S.P.E.W. taking flight, but he was still there."

Ginny scoffed, "Hermione, that was completely different. And you know it." Ginny knew Hermione's brain was working overtime, digesting new information about Ron, overcoming old feelings. She had to have pieced two and two together by now. She was Hermione after all.

"Yes, I know. I wish we could go back to when our indifferences consisted of whether or not I would do his History of Magic homework." Hermione huffed, as they made it up the hill. Before either could say another word, Molly caught sight of them and beckoned them closer.

(**)

"Just a butterbeer today. Thanks." Ron mumbled to the bartender.

The short, blond witch nodded and served up one frothy drink. Sliding it towards him, she smiled. "Tough day?"

Ron sighed, "You could say that. My best mate's getting married tomorrow."

"That's exciting," The woman started, her voice kind and polite. She nodded in the direction of a burly wizard at the other corner of the bar and pulled two glasses from the shelf behind her.

Ron shook his head, staring into his drink. He tapped against the glass, in no particular rhythm. "It's been a mess, finally made it to the rehearsal though." He added bitterly, "She's at the rehearsal dinner right now, with the rest of my family."

"And you're here because…?" She asked sweetly, mixing another concoction behind the counter. Her eyes lingered on him, waiting for a response.

"I suppose because the groom hates me. Which I can understand, considering he knows I'm in love with his fiancée. Then again, she seems to have decided to hate me as well. It's not like I can help the fact. I tried not to be, dated other people, and all of that nonsense, but you know how that goes." Ron waved off nonchalantly.

"Yes, I know how that goes." She said. With a wave of her wand, she sent the two glasses she had just mixed down to the other end of the bar. "Everyone has that one person, don't they?" She smiled at him weakly.

"The hardest thing about this one is that I've known her since… forever." He finished lamely. "It's not as though I can rip her from my life, you know? She's my best friend. How do you get over someone when you have to see them live their new, amazing life every day?" He looked expectantly up at the woman.

She shrugged, dragging a rag across the countertop. "I suppose the real question is do you want to get over her?"

Ron didn't need to think long for that answer. The answer wasn't debatable. "No." His voice broke slightly. "But I have to."

"Hmm, I've seen this before." The blond muttered, causing Ron to have to listen closely. "I wonder… have you told this girl how you feel?" Her stare was frighteningly similar to Ginny's.

"Well, yes-no, not exactly." Ron started, his eyes falling back to his drink. "It's not like it's that easy!" He exasperated, his voice turning to a mumble, "There would be no going back."

"It's not like you're better off here, are you?"

"I happen to be having a pleasant time right now, thanks." Ron responded with a soft laugh.

"If you say so." She shrugged again, tossing the rag into a sinkful of water. "It's just, I've seen many wizards sit in that same stool you're in, most of them afraid of changing, afraid of taking a leap of faith. Some of them still come back, always full of regret. And I'd hate to add another to that group."

Ron glanced up at the woman in front of him. She was smiling at him. He wondered if she had ever sat in this stool herself. But that was far too personal to ever ask. "So what do you suggest?" He asked, tilting his head to one side and raising an eyebrow.

She shook her head. "If I was this girl, and my best friend had secret feelings for me, I would want to know."

"Yeah?"

"Yes, no matter what." She confirmed.

"So, I should really go tell her." Ron stated, more than asked. He pushed his glass away from him, watching the water ring spread across the counter.

The woman grabbed the glass from his vision, causing his head to snap up in surprise. "Now or never, right? Just go already, before you chicken out."

"You sound like my sister." He mumbled, sliding himself off the stool. He rummaged through his pockets, and threw down some coins. "Thanks." He said, grinning as he pulled his wand from his back pocket. "I owe you one."

And with a pop he was gone.

(**)

The Flamingo was very pink and very muggle. When the two girls apparated outside the brightly lit stone building, Hermione wasn't sure what to expect. She had only ever heard about bachelorette parties, most from muggle films and novels. She knew nothing could prepare her for whatever Ginny had up her sleeve.

She had told Ginny not to plan one. She didn't want the attention, she never wanted the attention. But she was thankful that Ginny disregarded her wishes this time around. It made her story to Caden believable. And she definitely needed time to think before the wedding. Although, this didn't look like the sort of place where that would be possible.

"Ginny, what are we doing here?" She asked hesitantly through gritted teeth. She brushed the somewhat dampened hair out of her face, getting a closer view of her surroundings. The pink, the blaring music, the dancing, they weren't her, definitely not a comforting place.

"We're going to have fun. Just you wait, it'll be a blast." Ginny smiled, steering her way through the crowd at the bar. "You go find a table, big enough for… 6 or 7 people probably. I'll get the drinks!"

Hermione raised an eyebrow and glanced around the room. No one looked remotely familiar to her. With a hurried, slightly nervous feeling in the pit of her stomach, she asked the question she'd been dreading since the party had been finalized. "Ginny, who exactly should I be expecting?"

But Ginny didn't need to answer Hermione, assuming that she heard her over the music, someone else did for her. "Hermione Granger!" A voice cried from the side of the counter. "It's been too long!"

Hermione's eyes closed, fearing she recognized that voice. "Parvati?" She said, managing to place a smile on her lips as she turned towards the voice.

Seeing her again was like stepping back in time a few years. She was still as beautiful as she was in Hogwarts, her glossy brown hair shined in the Flamingo's bright pink and purple lights. She had a smile that stretched from ear to ear as she rushed towards Hermione, arms open.

"Oh no," Hermione whispered just before being engulfed in a hug.

"How are you? Well of course, you're wonderful, getting married! I was so surprised when Ginny owled." She said in a rush, pulling back but keeping Hermione at arm's length. "Who would have thought that Hermione Granger would be the first of us to tie the knot?"

Hermione had opened her mouth to say something, what she wasn't quite sure, when saved by Ginny's reappearance, holding a tray of drinks in her hand. "Come on girls, we can chit chat at the table." She stated, leading the way through the crowd.

They found a large table near the stage. Hermione wasn't quite sure what it would have been used for, it was bare that the moment aside from a few speakers on each side. Thinking back to the muggle movies she had seen, she hoped it wouldn't be part of one of the most common bachelorette activities. There weren't any poles, or anything though, so that was relaxing to see.

"So, Hermione, how'd you finally get Ron to pop the question?" Parvati asked with the utmost interest. "I mean, he could be a few knuts short of a sickle something, you know?

Hermione, who was taking a sip of her drink, choked at the mention of Ron's name. "W-what?" She spluttered, grabbing a napkin to cover her mouth.

"Don't be too hard on yourself," She said quickly, reaching her hand across the table to pat Hermione's hand. "Love is love, I should know. I'm with Seamus and we both know how far off he can be."

For a moment, Hermione's confusion turned to anger. Sure Ron wasn't the most observant wizard around, but that didn't mean he didn't have smarts. He was a brilliant wizard; she had done her best to help him with that. "Excuse me?" Hermione raged.

Parvati glanced from the brunette to the redhead in confusion. "I didn't mean anything by it, no need to get defensive-"

"Hermione's not marrying Ron." Ginny interrupted, causing a stir from both girls.

Hermione's glare broke and she regained composure. Parvati's eyes widened as she took a sip of her fruity drink. She pinched at her straw, clearly puzzled. "Then why are we here?" She asked slowly, the brightness fading from her stare. Her expression now was rather bored.

"I am getting married." Hermione stated, "To Caden."

"Caden?"

"Yes, you don't know him. He's an American. I met him on one of my trips over with the ministry." Hermione answered, her hands had fallen into her lap. For once she wasn't sure why, but she wanted to know what Parvati thought. She wasn't disappointed as Parvati's eyes lit up again, and her hands slammed onto the table, startling the girls and the glasses.

"An American? You do like foreigners, don't you? Why didn't you tell me?" Parvati asked, her words going at a mile a minute. "I'm sorry for the confusion. But you have to admit, everyone's likely to assume that you and Ron…"

"No, it's not likely. Ron and I were never a couple." Hermione retorted, defensively, but quickly added. "No hard feelings though, you didn't know."

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Yup, so Hermione's marrying Caden. Life is good. Oh Luna's here!" She shouted, standing from her seat to wave her over.

"It's better this way, anyway." Parvati whispered to Hermione across the table. "Lavender is going to be so happy to hear this. She almost wasn't going to come tonight, when she thought that it was Ron."

Hermione's stomach dropped and could only manage one word, "Lavender?"

"Yes, she may show up tonight. She got back from Spain only a few days ago. She's dating this very attractive Quidditch player. Taken a page from your book!" Parvati said, making herself giggle. "Because you love foreigners…" She added with more giggles.

Hermione smiled weakly, glancing around the room, now in fear of who she may see.

(**)

Ron wasn't sure what he would say. He couldn't very well run up and exclaim his love, could he? Hermione had always said this was his problem. He rarely thought ahead. That bartender inspired him to go, and now he was here, staring at the large white tent in the distance, without a rational thought running through his mind.

It had begun to rain some time since he had entered the bar, and now the ground of covered with puddles, the grass a dull green. But they had to still be there, they had a tent after all. Without another moment of hesitation, Ron trudged forward, his feet squishing the plants beneath him.

There was a string of lights leading the way to the reception area. They were still on.

The chairs were set up in two columns. In between the two columns was a long trail of white, leading up to a beautiful white gazebo. The gazebo was covered with purple flowers, lilacs, maybe? Ron didn't know much about flowers. But he knew this was definitely Hermione's wedding. It screamed her name, from the colors chosen to the delicate placement of each individual chair. Ron felt his stomach turn.

He took a deep breath and made his way to the large tent behind the wedding area. He drove his hand in his hair, combing through it, shaking water from it. He could hear voices. This was it, no going back now.

Ron grabbed hold of the white plastic sheet blocking his view and ripped it open. He couldn't imagine what he must have looked like to the people inside. People he definitely didn't know.

"Can I help you?" A tall, white haired lady asked curiously from behind a large white table. Her wand was up, flailing in the air. Flowers hung in the air, slowly moving into their correct locations by her command.

"I-I'm sorry, is there a Hermione Granger here?" Ron tried, although knew it was quite unlikely.

"Not anymore, dear. She left about an hour ago with a friend, red hair just like you." She added, nodding at his head. "I'm sure she's very busy. A very determined girl she is. The wedding's tomorrow, 2 o'clock."

Her bachelorette party was tonight. As if he could find her now, they could have gone to a million different places. Ron shook his head and mumbled, "It'll be too late by then." He didn't wait for any sort of response, simply stared at the ground and wished to be home, out of this cold, out of this rain, and out of this complete failure. Tomorrow would be too late. But not completely impossible. It was a bit more dramatic than he had wanted. He only hoped he'd still have the courage.

(**)

Two rounds of drinks and so far no Lavender. A few more women had joined the table, Luna Lovegood, two fellow interns at the Ministry, Katie Bell and Angelina Johnson. It was a random crowd, but Parvati did well to build bridges quickly, letting loose on the latest gossip of the wizarding world. It seemed as if she knew some little detail about everyone and anyone.

"I suppose she decided not to come." Parvati sighed, as if reading Hermione's thoughts. "Not that I blame her. If I thought that my ex was marrying the girl who stole him from me, I would freak too!"

Hermione opened her mouth to counter such an absurd statement when Luna suddenly exclaimed, "This place is crawling with Crumpkins." Her head was tilted to the side, staring at her napkin. "Muggle buildings are full of them, so is Neville's grandmother's house." She trailed off. No one looked more out of place at the table than Luna did. She played absent-mindedly with the dew falling from her glass, humming occasionally.

Hermione, too, had lost interest in the conversation early on, but she kept a smile on her face and was sure to nod occasionally. Ginny sat next to her, tapping her fingers on the table. She was swaying in her seat to the music playing over the speakers. The place was getting crowded, especially the dance floor. Hermione felt bad for Ginny. She wanted this to be fun, but Hermione had never been good with girly activities. She wasn't one for gossip, dancing, or even drinking. It had taken her much longer than the other to finish her second glass.

"So, Hermione, how did he propose?" Katie Bell asked sweetly from across the table. Immediately, all eyes fell on Hermione.

Parvati's eyes widened, as if she couldn't believe she forgot to ask the same question. She giggled and bounced in her seat, "Oh yes, do tell!"

"Well, I had no idea it was going to happen. None at all-" Hermione started.

Beth, from the Ministry, quickly interrupted, "Didn't you read the Prophet? There was a whole story about the engagement months ago." She brushed her pixie cut, brown hair from her face. She sighed dreamily, "It was very romantic, absolutely perfect. Apparently Caden had to planned weeks in advance."

The each woman smiled adoringly, causing Hermione to flush a light pink. "It was romantic," She agreed, nodding her head. "He took me to a Tornadoes game, took out a ring, and then the rest is history I suppose." She finished quietly.

Angelina shook her head. "And why couldn't Fred do something like that? You picked a winner, Hermione. He seems like a true gentleman."

"What, Fred's not gentleman enough for you, Angelina?" Katie joked, bumping her shoulder into her friend's. "I think you knew that when you signed up."

"I know, I know, I said yes, I must live with the consequences." Angelina grinned brightly.

"I always thought the twins were hot." Parvati jumped in, shrugging and sipping her drink, the little umbrella hitting her nose. "I mean, they always had that mischievous look to them. Goofy, sure, but who knows what sort of devilish antics they could have done."

Angelina raised her hand, "Well I know what one can do." The table rumbled with laughter, all except for the redhead.

Ginny scrunched up her nose, "Ew!" She exclaimed, holding her hands in front of her and shaking her head vigorously. "Not something I need to know about my brother, thank you!"

Lights began flashing against the dance floor, all sorts of colors. A loud hoot came from the crowd and more joined it. The music hastened. "Oh I love this song!" Beth shouted, over the tune. "Dance, anyone?"

A few nodded in agreement, and shuffled out on to the floor. "Come on, Hermione. It's your party, get out here!" Katie beckoned. "I never get to have a night out with just the girls, please!"

Hermione laughed at her enthusiasm. And shied away from her grasps. But Ginny was behind her, pushing her out of the booth, laughing and singing with the music. Before she knew what was happening, Hermione was on the dance floor surrounded by people she didn't know.

"You seemed stressed." Angelina yelled, ducking out of Parvati's flailing arms.

"I am." Hermione shrugged, stepping from side to side, unsure what else to do. "There's so much to do yet, so much to think about."

Angelina smirked (Fred and George would have been proud). "Can you do anything about it now?" Hermione shook her head. "Then don't worry about it. Tonight is for you. Let everything else go for now!" She ended.

Hermione smiled. Her problems would still be around tomorrow, or even later tonight. Now, she had a group of friends, free drinks, and music. It would be best not to let those things go to waste. She let herself be happy, and free. Her worries pushed into a corner of her mind, still present but only in flickering moments. She had to stop second-guessing herself.

(**)

Rebecca sometimes hated her job. Being an investigative reporter had its perks, obviously, but then there were also nights like tonight. She was spending her Saturday night pushing through crowds of drunk, immature muggles. She had to miss the Puddlemere United versus Wimbourne Wasps game for one of the most boring stories she ever been assigned. Did anyone actually care about the differences between muggle and wizard nightclubs? She highly doubted this would ever make the Prophet. But she couldn't argue with her supervisor, though she's tried.

Her Saturday night couldn't get much worse, or so she thought.

Maybe she could spin this into an actual story? Standing as far from the crowd in the center of the room as she could, Rebecca observed her surroundings. The people were dressed in tight, brightly colored clothes, the drinks seemed fruitier than ones she has had in the past, and the lights and music was controlled by electricity. She laughed at the absurdity of the observations. Of course, all these things were true.

Hands behind her back, she leaned against a muggleless table and sighed. It probably would have been a decent idea to invite someone. It could have been a fun night. She hadn't had many of those in the past year. She found herself swaying to the unfamiliar music, and closed her eyes briefly.

She still missed him occasionally, especially in moments like this. He would have loved this place. The dancing, laughing, everything about it. Her eyes opened slowly as she smiled. They had fun together, but fun couldn't last. Her mother used to tell her to be careful with her heart, and to never, ever fall in love with someone who loves another. But Rebecca was never one to follow the rules.

She snapped her head to the left as a flash of red caught her attention. It wasn't just any red. That bright, ginger color could only belong to someone of the Weasley name. Rebecca's breath caught in her throat when she saw them. It wasn't Ginny that startled her, Rebecca loved Ginny. It was the girl with the fuzzy chestnut hair, flashing a brilliant smile. This was the girl she had to surrender to so many months ago, and she didn't even know it.

At least they haven't seen her yet. She could just sit here, do her job, and leave. No awkwardness needed. But seconds later, Rebecca's stomach began to churn as the two girls—followed by two others she didn't' recognize—began walking towards her. They were all laughing.

"I'm parched!" One of the girls proclaimed, taking lead. Before Rebecca could make a run for it, the girl skipped over, smiling at her brightly. "Hello! Excuse me, ooo watch out, you're crushing the Crumpkins." She cried, causing Rebecca to jump sideways.

Ginny and Hermione stopped in their tracks. "Rebecca?" Ginny asked curiously. "What are you doing here? How have you been?" She added her own smile matching the blond's who was now sitting at the table behind them.

"Ginny, you look great. I've been all right, been busy with work. But I'm sure you know how that is." Rebecca answered, trying to be enthused. She could feel Hermione's stare on her. May as well face it, she thought, and turned towards the girl she was always so envious of, "Hermione."

The corners of Hermione's mouth turned up only slightly as she spoke. "Hello Rebecca."

With an awkward nod, Rebecca scooted sideways, putting as much room as she could between her and the other girls. "Well," She started, thinking fast. "I better get going…"

The other girl that followed them from the dance floor looked the most excited of them all, her eyes lit up with an idea. "You three know each other? Rebecca? I'm Parvati. You should stay; join in on the fun! Your first marriage only ever happens once!" She cried, throwing an arm around Hermione's shoulders. Hermione cringed under the unwanted attention.

Rebecca's eyes widened. She could only manage, "Oh, wow. Congratulations, Hermione." Hermione gave her a nod of thanks. The girl, Parvati, stared eagerly awaiting an answer. Rebecca swallowed hard, "Well, in that case, I wouldn't want to intrude."

Rebecca made a move to leave; she couldn't seem to breathe in here, right now. As she brushed past Hermione, earning confused glances from Parvati, she managed to squeak out a request. "Can you tell Ron I'm happy for him?"

Suddenly, Rebecca heard both Ginny and Hermione suck in a deep breath. Hermione froze, her eyes searching. "Please don't make a big deal out of this, Hermione. Honestly, you two should be together. I'll be fine. You don't have to sugar coat it for me, I'm glad I know." Rebecca added, misjudging Hermione's reaction.

Parvati burst out in a fit of laughter. Through screeches, she managed to say, "I thought the same thing!" She collapsed into a chair, her words dissolving into another fit.

"I'm not marrying Ron." Hermione stated. Her voice was calm, as if she was trying to keep herself under control. "And I would appreciate if people would stop saying that. I can't understand why anyone would assume that."

"You two were so flirty in Hogwarts. How could anyone not?" Parvati interrupted, throwing her hands about.

"We were never a couple. You knew that, Rebecca." Hermione said defiantly, sending a chillful glare her way.

Rebecca couldn't understand the dislike behind Hermione's eyes, but she didn't like it and definitely wouldn't stand for it. "Yes, I knew that. But I also know that you may as well have been one." She snapped. She had never spoken Hermione like this, never wanted to talk about this masked feelings. It felt good.

"What are you talking about?" She asked anxiously.

"You honestly don't know? I can't believe he still hasn't told you." She stated, disbelieving. Rebecca shook her head. Hermione stood there as if she'd been slapped.

"Ron shares many things with me. He's just-he's been through some tough times at work. We haven't gotten to talk as much…" She trailed off, as if waiting for Rebecca to jump in, but not wanting her to at the same time.

"I assumed you were engaged to Ron because you were the reason we broke up." Rebecca stated plainly. She had never seen Hermione so confused before, and after all the stories about how brilliant this girl was, Rebecca felt empowered. Ron would kill her if he knew what she was about to say, but frankly she didn't care.

"But he said-" Hermione started.

Rebecca cut her short. "He would tell you something else, especially since you had Caden on your arm." Hermione looked slightly hurt, her eyes cloudy. "I broke up with him. And would you like to know why? Every time you were around, it would be as if no one else was in the room. Do you know how that feels? Knowing your boyfriend is gawking at some childhood crush? Not good. And to make matters worse, I found the pictures in his dresser."

"Ooo nudie photos?" Parvati asked giddily from the table. Rebecca chose to ignore this comment. She had seen a light go on in Hermione's eyes once the pictures were mentioned. She, too, must have found them.

"I-I didn't know." Hermione said quietly, her words were barely audible over the music playing around the room. "I'm sorry."

Ginny, who had taken a step back to witness this exchange, jumped forward, placing a hand on Hermione's shoulder. "You have nothing to be sorry about. It's Ron's fault."

At this, Rebecca laughed. "No, she knew what she was doing. Even while he was with me, she knew his feelings. She had to have. She's Hermione Granger."

Hermione glared. "It's not that easy. He's such a hard person to read… And so stubborn." She rambled.

"Well now you're getting married, to someone that is not him. So you'll never have to worry about his stubbornness again." Rebecca said, ready for this night to be over. There was nothing to report here. It was old news, and something she had thought she was beyond. "I'm sorry. But I need to go."

She brushed past the two, and melted into the crowds of dancers, leaving Parvati's laughter behind her. She had willed herself not to choke up again over this situation. Instead, she let anger surge. She wasn't generally an angry person, but tonight, she'd let herself be.

(**)

Hermione's eyes closed. Without a moment of hesitation, she pictured the Burrow clearly in her mind. Most of the Weasley's had been invited to the Quidditch game with Caden, while Molly and Arthur were out with the Miff's. Only one redhead would be there tonight, and he was just the one she needed to speak too. If she had to sit in his room for a few hours, she would. He would answer her questions.

With a slight 'pop', Hermione felt her feet hit dirt-covered ground.

Her eyes opened as she fought for her balance. The house was pitch black inside, matching the rest of the hill it sat on. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a light flicker in one of the rooms. She craned her neck to decipher the exactly where he was. High up, a light glow came from the uppermost window. Perfect, she knew that room well.

With another swirl of her wand, and a loud 'pop' she was gone again.

"OY!" Ron jumped and twirled around; away from the bed, he was uncovering. A loud crack pierced through the air of his small room. Half-stumbling onto his bed, he reached for his wand.

"Don't you dare." Hermione growled from the doorway. "You leave that there."

Ron's eyes widened. "Hermione, wh-what are you doing here?" His hand dropped the willow wand at his nightstand, and then immediately second guessing himself. She had a wicked look in her eyes. With a gulp, his gaze moved to the ground, realizing then that he was clan only in his emerald green pajama pants.

Hermione's eyes wandered the same path Ron's were. She hadn't thought that he'd be half naked when she apparated. Her eyes traced over his broad freckled shoulders, past his toned chest, and down to the light red hair that trailed over his stomach and beyond. She shivered slightly; she had never truly been able to take in Ron's features like this before. She could feel her cheeks flushing pink.

Ron cleared his throat, shifting uneasily. Hermione's eyes snapped back up to meet his. "You are going to answer some questions, Ronald Weasley. So take a seat."

"Now wait a minute. You can't just waltz in here and command me to do something!" Ron ranted. His ears were growing redder by the second. Hermione glared at him.

"We both know you wouldn't listen to me any other way. I want to know why you said those things to me. Why you would choose now to tell me how horrible Caden is? He's been nothing but nice to you." She retorted. Her hand tightened around her wand, waiting for any sudden movements.

Ron laughed mockingly. "Really? You believe that? Caden is prick, Hermione. And he sure as hell isn't the right bloke for you. I stand by everything I said that day. Everything." He added, stretching the word out slowly.

Hermione stood by the door, shocked at how he just spoke to her, as if she was five years old. Ron glared back at her, waiting for a response. His hands were tightening into fists with frustration. "Is he a prick because he reminds you of Viktor? I can see it; you treat him as you did your favorite Quidditch player all those years ago. Or maybe you see that Caden will always be a bigger man than you, he's more mature, dignified." Hermione spat. She regretted it the moment it was said.

"Really, Hermione, that's what you think? You think I wish I had Caden's manners and looks?" Ron questioned harshly. "For once, you've got it wrong."

"No, Ron, you do. You're jealous of Caden because he has what you threw away." Hermione lowered her wand. She was almost there. Sadness crept into her voice, but she brushed it off, letting anger fill her. She took a deep breath, willing herself to answer his next question.

Ron took the bait. He always did. Hermione knew him too well. "Oh yeah, what's that?" He took a step forward, trying to intimate her, his eyes were shining. It had been weeks since their last fight, and they were both ready for it.

Hermione narrowed her eyes. It was now or never. She whispered, barely audible, "Me."

Ron blinked. His mouth opened and closed a few times, making him look like a fish struggling out of water. He crossed his arms over his chest, straightening himself up further. "You've lost your marbles. You really have this time." He resisted. His ears flamed on.

"Really? What are all of these then, Ron, hm?" She turned her back on him to ransack through the bottom drawer of his dresser. They were hidden beneath several old Chudley Cannon posters, but still there, as they were the first time she saw them. She pulled out the stack of newspaper clippings, full of black and white pictures of her. A few fluttered to the ground.

"Hey! Those are private." Ron grabbed for them, his hand clasped around her wrist, bringing her closer.

"Ha! Private!" Hermione reached her arm as high as she could, trying to keep the papers out of his grasped. Her body grazed sideways against his bare chest. "Just admit you're jealous, Ronald." She said, holding back a shiver.

Even on her tiptoes, Ron easily took the papers from her hands. "Fine!" He shouted, letting go of her, the clippings clasped in his other hand. "I'm jealous. Okay, that's it. You're bloody marrying a bloke you hardly know, and leaving me in the dust. So I guess I'll just be on my merry way. You don't have to sit here and rub it in my face."

Hermione felt a rush of emotions. Part of her was relieved, relieved that she had been right. The other was heartbroken and angry that it took her being unobtainable for him to decide on this. Suddenly she backed away from him, as if being too close would burn her.

"You always want what you can't have. It is always been this way with us, Ron. You never ask me first, even when I specifically told you! And-and now it's too late." She whispered. "I shouldn't have come here."

"This! This is why I never said anything." He gasped, throwing his hands in the air. "You would go all barmy on me. We'd fight, and you run away crying. Maybe you're right, maybe I only want what I can't have. Would that make you feel better to hear, Hermione? Because either way you spin it, you're wrong."

Hermione felt the tears prickle behind her eyes. What had she expected would happen when she found out? When she heard the truth? She couldn't. She promised. What could she do…? "I'm sorry." She said quietly.

Ron saw something in her eyes, a speck of hope, maybe? He stepped forward, letting go of his anger. "Don't say you're sorry. When someone says their sorry, it is because they did something they regret. And the Hermione I know, the Hermione I love…" He spoke the last word softly, causing her to gaze up at him, her brown eyes wet with tears. "That Hermione doesn't regret anything. She calculates, and decodes ever inch of everything. And even though it drives me mad sometimes, I know she'll do what's best for her. She'll do what makes her happy. That's all I want, Hermione. I'm here, no matter what, I always will be."

She sniffled, and wiped the teardrops from her cheeks. With a deep breath, she held up her wandless hand. "I-Ron…" She started, her eyes melting into his. "I need to think. I need time. I need to be alone."

Hermione shook her head, drew her wand up again and closed her eyes. Ron's eyes widened and took a few more steps to stop her. It couldn't end this way, she couldn't end the night this way… But she was already gone. "Bloody hell… that didn't go well." He muttered, running a hand through his hair.

_Thanks for reading! Please review! _


	14. Wedding Bells

_A/N: Here it is! Hopefully, I didn't keep any of you waiting for too long. I'm planning on at least one more chapter after this one. Hope you enjoy it! __ Thanks for reading._

Hermione stood in front of her mirror, gazing at her puffy, red eyes. With one look, anyone could see she hadn't slept. Many would blame it on the nerves. Many would believe she couldn't wait for this new phase in life to begin, couldn't wait to take that final step. But many hadn't been in Ron's room last night.

Ron's words stung. They filtered through her mind without pause. She was angry. She was confused. She was shocked. She had given up on Ronald Weasley. After years of believing, he felt the same for her, and wishing for him to show some sort of affection in return, he had finally done it… but it was too late. He knew that. He had all of those chances. Every time he had chosen someone else.

Hermione took a deep breath, and played with a lock of her messy hair. She watched each strand slowly fell apart from the group. She was afraid to close her eyes. Every time she did, tears would come. "The ball's in your court now," She whispered to herself.

She didn't like this feeling. Uncertainty. If her story were already written, she could research, and would have an answer… But alas, there is no book to help this situation, only memories and feelings to pick through.

Pulling her robe tighter around her body, she stepped out of the bathroom and trudged towards her room. Ginny was running late, again. She was supposed to have been here fifteen minutes ago to start on Hermione's hair; not that it mattered much. Hermione wasn't feeling particular excited to start the hours of work it took to straighten her curls. Instead, Hermione wanted to sit in the corner, and have time to think.

She plopped on her bed and searched her room. The sun was streaming through her thin yellow curtains, smiling brightly at her. The far corner of the room glittered as the light hit the large, white dress seated there. Although it was intimating, Hermione had to admit, it was a pretty sight.

The dress was perfect, she had found it one day during her lunch hour. It had been hanging on a rack, pushed almost completely from sight. She would have probably missed it, had it not been too big for its location. The ruffled bottom spread widely past the others near it. It wasn't highlighted in sequence, lace, or feathers. It was made of a simple, soft fabric that she had loved running her hands down. She felt beautiful in it.

She sighed and shook her head. Her eyes dragged across the floor near the dress. It was perfectly clean… aside from a few boxes of books scattered about. Ginny had went crazy when she saw the dress just hanging Hermione's closet. According to her, all the hidden dust bunnies and dirt clumps could ruin the lovely article. But books could never harm anything.

Hermione smiled weakly, crawling off her bed towards the corner. She reached the boxes, and began sorting through them, wondering why the books had never made it back to the shelves. They were old, and she remembered quickly why they were piled high here instead of seated orderly in the living room. Instead of historic documents, data sheets, and potion books, these were all works of fiction. Most of them, she hadn't opened in years.

She pulled a few from the very bottom of the box on her right side, and was shocked at her findings. She laughed to herself, wondering why she kept such books. There were tattered copies of childish stories. The largest was a book of muggle fairy tales. This was just the book she had been looking for a few years ago. She had thought she lost it. Ron had been asking her about muggle children stories… She took a deep breath and ran her hands along the cover.

The gold paint shimmered under her touch. It was slowly starting to crack away with age. She traced the blue lettering with her fingers as she did so many years ago, when she first opened it on Christmas morning. She had been ten then, and had started to assume these tales could never exist. The cover creaked as she opened it wide.

The table of contents was written in elegant script, and would have looked perfect if it hadn't been for the green smudges on the right side of the page. It looked as though a pen had bled through the paper… With a quick flick of her wrist, she found the culprit.

The handwriting was easily recognizable, and Hermione gave a startled yelp. She had forgotten about the dedication. A tear sprang from her eye as she touched her mother's hurried writing. It was smudged slightly, as if it had been brushed against before it had dried completely. But the words were still legible.

_Dearest Hermione,_

_Happy Christmas! I thought this would be a wonderful addition to your library of books. It is full of stories you must never forget. They are practice for the many adventures you'll find yourself in years from now. Although evil warlocks, dragons, and deadly curses may not exist, _-Hermione laughed aloud at this—_troubles will find you. But as you read these stories, do not fear, because you will have weapons none of your demons could know. Of course, I speak of your stubbornness, your thirst for knowledge, your respect for all things, and your strong sense of self. I know you will never be a damsel in distress, like some of the girls you have read. You'll be your own hero. And one day, you'll find a prince; a prince that loves you for who you are, and wants nothing more than to help you succeed. He'll stand beside, never in front of you. He'll make you laugh and perhaps sometimes, make you cry. It may not happen right away. He will probably take you by surprise (all the best ones do). But believe me, it is worth the wait. True love is very rare, and must not be taken lightly._

_So remember to be yourself. Be my little girl. Be strong and let yourself shine. _

_All my love, _

_Mum_

Hermione hadn't realized her cheeks were wet until a small drop splattered against the page she was reading. How had she forgotten this was here? How had she dismissed this message from the past?

She reread the note twice, her eyes stopping on certain parts. Hermione had never been very popular in primary school. Her mother had been her best friend, aside from Harry and Ron. Was there anyone else who knew Hermione better? What would her mum say now...? Would Hermione still look like a hero in her eyes, or had she turned into one of those damsels? Was she too busy looking for love to see it clearly?

A small, quiet knock came from her open bedroom door. Startled, Hermione's head snapped up. Ginny stared at her. Uncertainty shone brightly in her eyes. She didn't' speak, and Hermione knew why. Hermione sat cowered in the corner of her room. Her hands gripping a book of fairy tales as tears fell from her eyes. What a sight she must have been.

"Hermione-" Ginny started, taking a step into the room.

"I can't do this, can I?" Hermione interrupted in a raspy voice. She brushed the back of her hand against her cheek, wiping some of the moisture from them.

(**)

She had left. Ron was sure she would have apparated back into his room at some point throughout the night. He hadn't slept. His eyes drooped as the darkness faded, and morning took flight, but she never showed.

Someone was stomping down the stairs, probably his father. Ron could already smell eggs and bacon from the kitchen. He rubbed his hands across his face, and through his hair, trying to clear his mind and come up with some kind of sane thought.

Maybe he should have gone after her. He had struggled with himself for hours after she left. But she had said she needed to be alone. If he had followed, she may have done something they both would regret later… He kept telling himself he did the right thing. But now, sitting alone in his bed, he was rethinking that.

It hurt. He hadn't believed it would hurt this bad, but now that his feelings were in the open… unrequited, he couldn't help but feel weakened. How could they ever get past this? Stupid bartenders and their horrible advice. He should have just lied. At least then, he'd still have his best friend.

He had half a mind to skip the wedding. The thought of her standing up there with anyone other than him… did not bring happy thoughts. But hadn't he said he wanted whatever made her happiest? His promise tasted sour in his mouth. That was a rotten idea. Bloody promises.

(**)

"Hermione, you look…" Harry began, smiling as he entered her bridal tent. His smile quickly changed into a frown as he took in the sight of his friend. Her hair was pulled into a quick ponytail instead of the mountain of curls he had expected. Her attire was clearly wrong for the occasion; the white dress he had anticipated was replaced with a pair of jeans and a gray knitted sweater. She had been pacing, but stopped dead in her tracks when he entered. "What's going on here?" He asked cautiously.

With a quick scan around the tent, he could see she was alone, and her dress was nowhere to be found. "Hermione, is everything okay?"

She took a deep breath and said quietly, "Yes, I'm going to try very hard to make everything okay."

"Wait," Harry stopped her, holding a hand in the air. "Where is your dress? Hermione everyone is here, waiting for you to make your grand entrance. Places have been set, relatives flown in…" He trailed off, seeing the chilly glare on her face.

"Thank you, I'm well aware." She stated icily. "It's just-Ron was right. This doesn't feel like me. I don't have regrets. I don't rush into things. And I don't like Quidditch."

"Back to that again, are we?" Harry asked, "You two don't have to enjoy the same things, Hermione. No couple has the exact same interests. You said yes to Caden because you care about him, you love him, don't you?"

"Of course, but being in love and loving someone, are two very different things. I forgot that somewhere along the way. I sort of lost myself in the process…" Hermione trailed off. She began to pace again, this would take every amount of courage she had. "But he knows me, and he loves me." She whispered to herself.

Harry must have heard and narrowed his eyes. He spoke his words slowly, as it looked as if Hermione was off in her own world. "Yes… and he's waiting for you."

"He's been waiting an awfully long time, hasn't he? Just as I have; took me by surprise that one did." Hermione added softly. "I suppose I shouldn't make him wait any longer…"

Still plenty confused, Harry glanced around the room once more and muttered, "All right then… where's your dress?"

Hermione blinked and saw Harry's arms lift into the air, gesturing to the empty room. "No, no wait. I need you to do something for me, Harry. Can you do that?"

The guests were filtering into the beautiful garden and the sun was shining against the bright blue sky. Wonderful day. Ron thought bitterly. He, clad messily in his black dress robes, slouched towards the columns of chairs he had first seen many hours before.

"Are you with the bride or the groom?" One usher—bright, perfect blond hair, must be of Caden's relation- asked Ron. Ron grunted rudely and gestured towards his brothers sitting on the left. The usher stepped aside, eyebrows raised before switching to an incoming couple.

"Looking good, Ronnie-kins." Fred mocked, patting his younger brother's shoulder roughly. "I never thought I'd see the day, Little Miss Head Girl getting married."

"And to an American no less." George butted in, leaning over Angelina, who rolled her eyes and pushed him away.

"Shut it." Ron grumbled. He wasn't in the mood to deal with his twin brothers' hilarious remarks. Ron had waited by the window all morning for her owl. After everything that was said last night, after she barged in demanding the truth, she still chose to be here. He said he only wanted her to be happy. Why couldn't she be happy with him?

"Aw little brother, something on your mind?" Fred started. Angelina swatted him in the arm. Ron could have sworn he heard her mutter something about 'the poor sap', but maybe it was just his imagination.

"He's just mad he got bumped from being the one to give Miss Granger away." George observed.

"No dear brother, he was never asked, remember?" Fred scoffed. If he was trying to be subtle, he was horrible at it. Angelina rolled her eyes again, unable to control her husband. Fred's arm fell around her shoulders, a grin playing on his lips.

"Ah, yes." George reminisced. He brought his finger to his chin, portraying someone in deep thought. Suddenly he turned back to face the three of them, his eyes shining. "Wonder why that might be. Such an important role deserves much consideration."

"Perhaps, Harry's a better friend?" Fred added questionably.

"Or, perhaps, Hermione's friendship with Harry is different?" George said, narrowing his eyes.

"Oh but how so, George?"

"Shall we have a blast from the past?" George grinned like a bobcat.

"Oh yes, please." Fred nodded excitedly. The two began counting on their fingers. Ron tried to ignore them.

"Harry never crushed his Krum figurine because he was jealous, did he?" George questioned, holding up one finger.

"No sir. Did Hermione ever stop talking to Harry because he was dating Ginny?" Fred countered.

"Oh no, that was Lavender's doing I believe." George made a face as he recalled the Sweetheart necklace, pretending to put a fake chain around his neck. "Now, she was a catch."

"Then there was Jeremy, funny guy… until Ron shut him up that night at Three Broomsticks. I wonder why Harry hadn't been the first to defend Miss Granger's honor…" Fred said, glancing at George and laughing heartily.

"Oh, he was hilarious. Hermione wouldn't speak to Ron for days after that fact. Although I can't blame you much for your actions, right Ronnie? Then there was Rebecca. Sweet girl, she was."

"She really tore a hole through your friendship, didn't she Ron?" Fred asked.

"And still is…" Angelina mumbled, her arms crossed, staring straight ahead. Fred looked taken a back.

"Anything you would like to share with us, dear?" He asked sweetly.

She shrugged, "We saw Rebecca last night. She was the reason Hermione left the party. They had a mini row apparently. Ginny wouldn't give us the details."

Ron, who had tried his best to disregard the exchange between his brothers, perked up at this new information. Hermione had spoken to Rebecca minutes before seeing him… She must have told her about the newspaper clippings. And that meant… she probably told her the truth about the breakup... It was no wonder why Hermione was furious when she popped into his room.

"Interesting..." George started, trying to find a way to work with Angelina's interruption. "But none of that matters now. Apparently, Ronnie's met his match and given up all the facts. Mr. Miff has pulled one over on our baby brother, Fred." George sighed, frowning.

"So sad."

"Very."

Both their eyes fell on Ron, who looked more disgruntled than before. "Caden's a wanker, and Hermione's making a mistake. She knows it." He mumbled.

"Now that sounds more like our Ronnie." Fred beamed. "Strange though, that he's still sitting here, waiting for the inevitable, instead of trying to change it."

"Two-three-four tries are better than one, as I always say." George stated.

"I couldn't agree more." Fred countered. He turned his attention back to the gazebo. George swirled around to the woman sitting behind him. Both smirked knowingly. Neither watched as what they said worked its way into Ron's thick skull. They knew their brother too well.

But Ron had had his mind made up already. Within seconds, he was stumbling out in the aisle again, readily moving towards the changing quarters. He couldn't believe he almost given up, almost sat there and watched Hermione marry a complete idiot. This wasn't Krum or Jeremy, Ron wasn't simply being some stupid, jealous teenager. This was serious. All the facts were there, whether she wanted to believe it or not. Ron loved her. And she had to love him back, she just had to. It only made sense.

With a look to the sky and a bright smile, Fred leaned back in his chair. "Honestly, what would they do without us, George?"

(**)

It felt like an eternity before the tent opened again. Hermione closed her eyes, readying herself for the hurt she was about to cause. It was something she had to do. "Gryffindor, don't fail me now…" She mumbled to herself, and turned towards the person who just entered.

Her eyes widen the moment she opened them. Ron's tall frame stood ahead of her. He wore plain, black dress robes, his red hair striking against the dark color. He was gazing at her earnestly. She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. There was so much to say to him, and so very little time. Where to begin was a mystery.

However, he didn't give her much time to ponder. "This wedding is a mistake." He said boldly. His arms crossed in front of him. His blue eyes flashed brilliantly as he clenched his teeth and continued. "I said it once, and I'll say it again."

Hermione nodded. "I know."

"And don't tell me that I'm a horrible—What?" He started, shaking his head vigorously when her response caught him off guard.

She smiled weakly. "Look at me, Ron. Does it look like I'm ready to walk down the aisle?" Her arms flew out from her sides, showing off the fact that she definitely wasn't in her wedding attire. "I came to tell-"

"You're not getting married?" He spluttered, taking several steps closer to her. "When? How? But why didn't you…"

"I'll explain later, okay? Once I've worked it all out for myself—"

"Does that mean? Do you-" Ron interrupted. His eyes were wide. He leaned closer to her, as if he would be able to understand her more clearly this way. "I can't believe…"

"Hermione?" Caden's voice came from behind the tent's door. "Hermione, Harry told me this was an emergency. Are you okay?" His tone was urgent, but low enough not to cause alarm to the guests only a few feet away.

Ron straightened immediately at his voice. All intrigue and curiosity flew from his stunned face. In his best whisper, he said, "So you haven't told him yet?"

Hermione, who was staring at the door Caden stood behind, shook her head slowly. She had suddenly forgotten why she was here. Her tongue was frozen on the roof of her mouth, and her feet stood still. She had it all thought out… and of course, Ron had to go ruin her concentration.

"You need go." She managed, and took a few steps towards the entrance. "Is there a back door in this thing?" She asked to no one in particular, as her head flew in each direction trying to place one. "Hold on one second, Caden." She called quickly.

Hermione glared at Ron, as if to say, 'Well is there a door?' He looked around feverishly, throwing his arms up in the air in frustration. "It's a tent. It has one door, Hermione. Look, I'll just leave when he comes in?"

"No, you can't. He'll know." Hermione whispered frantically, stealing worried glances between Ron and Caden's shadow.

"Know what?" Ron asked, only a few feet from the tent entrance now as well. "Hermione-"

Hermione ignored him. "Are you a wizard or not? Just make a door." She pulled her wand out of her pocket swiftly and held it up in the air ready to cast. But Ron was too fast for her, he grabbed her wrist gently.

"What will Caden know, Hermione?"

She faltered, losing her train of thought at Ron's unexpected touch. She stared down at his hand on her. Finding her voice, she asked accusingly, "What are you doing?"

He raised an eyebrow, and repeated, "What exactly will 'Caden know' if he sees me in here?" A smile was playing on his lips as he finished asking the question he already knew the answer to.

Hermione glared at him. "He'll think that you're the reason, okay? So get out!" She half-shouted, momentarily forgetting to whisper.

"Hermione?" Caden called again from behind the curtain. "What's going on?"

"Hermione-" Ron began, "Do you mean to say that, well that… I'm the reason you're not doing this?"

"You're impossible." She snapped, refusing to answer his question right here and now. "This is not the place."

"But it is." Their eyes met briefly.

"I'm coming in." Caden called again.

Before either had time to respond, the white door fluttered open revealing a handsome looking man with perfectly combed hair. Caden was dressed sharply in his crisp black robes. He pulled them at the front as he entered, ensuring they were unwrinkled. His eyes were closed, and he held a hand out in front him, "Better cover up. I don't want to see the dress. You know it's bad luck." He said with a smile.

Ron snorted.

Caden's eyebrows creased together before he opened his eyes in confusion. His head moved back and forth between the two people in front of him. He stumbled over his words, "What is…? Hermione, where is…? Why is he…? What's going…?"

"You're going to have to finish a question if you want an answer." Ron said coolly, rocking back on his heels. His hands flew his pockets, the anxiety from before fading away. He almost couldn't stop the smile from appearing on his face.

"Honestly? Hermione glared at him again, her stare cold. "Be a little more considerate."

"Why is _he_ here?" Caden finally asked. He seemed to spit out the word 'he', sending a chill down Hermione's spine. She silently cursed Ron for ruining her original plan.

"This really has nothing to do with him, Caden. This is about us." Hermione started, taking a step closer to her fiancé.

He looked down at her as she did this, as though he was noticing her fully for the first time. His eyes wandered past her face, down to her toes and back up again. "You're not wearing your dress." He stated.

"Nothing gets past you, does it Caden?" Ron mumbled. Hermione shot him another dirty look. He immediately looked away towards the ground, a smile now playing on his lips.

"There's a good explanation for that, actually." Hermione said. "You see, I've been doing a lot of thinking the past few days… and I-"

"No." Caden interrupted. He shook his head. "You're not doing this."

"Caden, please listen to me." Hermione tried. "You're such an amazing man, Caden. You really are. And I love you. I do. I just… This is hard to say. I feel like we've rushed into this. I hardly know you, and you in return, hardly know me."

"That's an understatement." Ron muttered again, letting his eyes roam nonchalantly around the room.

"We're getting married, Hermione. We'll have years to understand each other." Caden exasperated.

"But we're rushing, Caden. We're trying so desperately to finish this puzzle called our lives that we've forgotten to check and make sure we've found the right pieces." Hermione rushed. The analogy fell from her lips before she could stop it, and even as she said it, she wasn't sure it exactly made sense.

"It's him, isn't it?" Caden asked. His desperate stare met Ron's spiteful one. They stood there for a few seconds, glaring at each other, waiting for Hermione to answer.

"Caden, stop. This is between you and me. Leave Ron out of this." Hermione said, laying a hand on Caden's arm.

Caden jumped away from her, as if she had burned him by being too close. "No! This has always been about him, Hermione. Don't play coy with me. He's always there. I see the inside jokes you two share, and your stolen glances. The only time you're ever in a rotten mood is when the two of you aren't speaking. You're constantly worried about his feelings, and how your decisions—our decisions!—will affect him." Caden eyes grew furious. His fists clenched at his sides as he continued. "I've tried to brush it aside, thinking we'd get past it once you're my wife. But you'll always go running back to him, won't you?"

"I-Caden, there's more to it than that. Honestly, look at this rationally… we've only been dating for a few months and-"

"And who put that thought into your pretty little head?" Caden spat.

"Watch yourself," Ron grunted, taking one step closer to Caden's maddening figure.

Caden threw his hands up in front of him, his face red. "Defending my lady's honor, I see. You're the problem, Ron. You always have been. And always will. Do you honestly think he can give you everything you need, Hermione? Look at him, he's failed at so many things, I can't believe he still has a job." Caden probed.

Ron took another step forward, pushing his sleeve past his elbow. His ears were growing red. Hermione could see the scene play out before it even had time to begin. She turned towards Ron, laying a hand on his arm. "Don't Ron, please, it's not worth it." Her voice had turned desperate.

This set Caden blazing. Anger ebbed off him. "We are perfect for each other, Hermione. The two of us could run this place. But you're choosing _that_? For being the brightest witch of our age, you're making an awfully stupid decision."

"Caden, listen to yourself. Please, it doesn't have to end this way." Hermione tried again. Her hand was still resting against Ron's arm. She had put herself between the two men, wishing the fire would end here.

"I'm afraid it does, Hermione. I can't believe you. I thought you had more sense." He shook his head, and backed into the edge of the tent. "Enjoy your cheap Cannons tickets. I'm sure you'll have a most fulfilling life." He added, before opening the door.

The sun streamed into the tent. Dozens of frightful eyes were staring at them. Unaware of the attention, Ron jerked out from Hermione's grasp. "She doesn't even like Quidditch, you wanker." He called after Caden.

Caden stopped only a few feet from the tent, and turned with an eyebrow raised. "Did you hear that, Hermione? You're pathetic, Ron. I ought to…"

He was interrupted as Ron stepped forward, his arm swung back ready to strike. Caden's arms flew into the air, acting as a shield over his face. But before Ron's hand made contact, it stopped in middle air, as if it hit an invisible barrier. Following everyone's stare, Ron's gazed back at Hermione, who had her wand raised in front of her.

"I told you it wasn't worth it, Ron." She said simply. Her eyes were glistening, but she didn't dare let that show.

Caden, once aware that he was no longer in danger, straightened himself and tugged on his robes. He turned, and found himself surrounded by questionable glances. With a smile, he said loudly, "As you can see, there will be no wedding today. Thank you for attending, safe travels home."

He nodded politely at the crowd, and walked towards the road, his very concerned parents following briskly.

Excited whispered engulfed the beautiful gardens. Hermione let her charm go, and felt suddenly very tired. Many faces still stared at her from the lined seats. Many were holding back laughter, while others were trying to find the most fashionable and graceful exit. Hermione stepped back into the tent, and closed the door behind her.

She wasn't alone for long, when Ginny came rushing after her. "Hermione! What happened? Harry said he got Caden for you, and then we heard shouting… Are you okay?"

"I need a minute, okay? Can you tell everyone I'll see them in a little while? I need to register this, breathe a little before the questions start. That wasn't the way it was supposed to go." She stated. She smiled at Ginny, as her friend nodded.

"I'll handle the crowd. But don't go too far, I'll need details soon."

A second later, Hermione disapparated. She landed in the only place she knew she would be safe from prying eyes. With a small smile, she made her way past the moving boxes towards the bed, took a seat and closed her eyes.

(**)

Ron had looked everywhere for her. Ginny was sure she would show up eventually, but he didn't want to take any chances. He had been to Hermione's house, Grimmauld Place, Three Broomsticks, and the Leaky Cauldron. No one had seen her since the wedding.

Or the non-wedding? He wasn't sure what to call it exactly.

Either way, it went as well as he could have ever dreamed. He would have enjoyed punching Caden, or at least giving him a good kick. But it was probably better that Hermione stopped him. He didn't need to have a sore hand with work in two days.

Hermione had said and done a lot of things a few hours ago that he would have liked her to explain a bit more. She had said Caden would _know_ the reason. So, was he truly the reason she left her fiancé? Ron smiled at the thought. He hadn't really stopped grinning since the moment he walked into that tent to find Hermione without her wedding dress.

But he would just have to wait, until Hermione was ready, to find the answers for which he was looking. He took the steps up to his room slowly, not in a huge rush to fall asleep. Sleep wouldn't come easy tonight. There was too much unrest.

He pushed his door opened softly, and found himself immersed in darkness. He tripped over a box on his way past his chest of drawers, and cursed under his breath. He had to get the rest of these things to George's soon. The room was becoming too cluttered for even him to live in.

He shrugged off his outer robe, and let it fall to the ground soundlessly. Afraid of tripping flat on his face, Ron pulled out his wand and whispered, "Lumos". A small light illuminated the small room. He started to make his way towards his bed, when an unfamiliar movement caught his attention.

He reacted quickly, flailing his wand out in front of him, pointing it directly at the bed. A mass of hair shied away from the new source of light and made a small squeak. Ron's eyes widened as he stepped closer.

There lay the girl of his dreams. The girl he had spent most of the night looking for, and she had been here, right under his nose. He let the light go out, and quietly sat on the patch of free space next to Hermione's sleeping frame.

Her face was covered in her hair. He reached out and brushed it off her cheek, something he's dreamed of doing since… forever. With a scrunch of her nose, her brown eyes open cautiously. She wiped the rest of the hair from her face, until she can see Ron clearly enough. Hermione smiled sleepily at him, and whispered shyly, "Hi".

"Hi," Ron said, grinning back at her.

_Thanks for reading, please review. _


End file.
